It Started with a Dream
by myblondeslytherin
Summary: When Hermione Granger returns to Hogwarts for her 7th year, she has a dream that turns her whole world upside-down. What does Draco Malfoy have to do with this dream? Will the two enemies be able to forget their past and find love in the darkest of times?
1. Chapter 1

It was only the first day of Hermione Granger's seventh year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and she already felt the need to escape. Not escape the school, mind you, but rather, her best friends, Harry Potter (The Boy Who Lived to be Silent and Stare Off Into Space with a Haunted Look in His Eyes), and Ron Weasley. Under normal circumstances she would have loved to sit and chat with her best friends in the Great Hall, the boys that had made her first six years of school so full of adventure and amazing (but terrifying) experiences, but right now she just couldn't handle looking at their faces.

She knew this year was going to change everything between them, what with Dumbledore's death at the hands of Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy at the end of the last year, and with Harry's impending search for the Horcruxes. Just the thought of Harry out there alone (he insisted that Hermione and Ron would NOT be going with him, but whether they would REALLY let him go alone was doubtful) chilled Hermione to her bones. She shivered involuntarily.

"What's wrong, Hermione?" Ron's baritone voice asked from the seat next to her.

"Hmm..? Oh. Nothing, Ron." She made a pathetic attempt at a smile, but Ron saw straight through that. His eyes narrowed but all he said was, "Oh. Okay then." He went back to pushing his food around his plate.

The fact that he wasn't eating at all shocked her out of her thoughts. It took Hell freezing over to keep Ronald Weasley from eating everything within grabbing range. She gaped at him but he seemed lost in his own thoughts and took no notice.

Her eyes wandered over to Harry. His beautiful emerald eyes were sunken in and surrounded by deep, bruise-like circles. He looked like he hadn't slept in weeks. Come to think of it, she doubted he HAD slept in weeks. Her heart ached for Harry. He had grown from boy to man in such a short time and it had been against his will. She hated that he had been forced to live this life without having any say in the matter. She just wished she could take all of his pains and worries onto herself so he could have just one moment of peace. The fact that he felt like he needed to go through it all alone grated on her nerves. It made it hard for her to be around him. She just wished he would turn back into the old, fun-loving Harry that she missed so much. But that wouldn't happen until he destroyed the Horcruxes and killed Voldemort.

The Great Hall was unusually quiet, still in shock from having their beloved Professor Dumbledore ripped from them by someone who was supposed to be his friend. There was very little conversation, so when the Hall doors creaked open, every eye turned to look. The relative silence quickly turned to complete silence and then the voices rose to a level almost akin to a roar. When Hermione looked up and saw platinum blonde hair and grey eyes, she went into shock.

How? How could he possibly be here? How could he show his face again after everything he's done?

She was shocked out of her reverie by two angry snarls coming from her right. Ron had turned bright red and was lunging out of his seat and Harry was doing the same.

_Oh my god, they'll KILL Malfoy if they get to him. I have to do something._

Hermione jumped out of her chair and lunged after the boys. She finally reached them when they were about ten feet away from the blonde. She latched a hand on the backs of each of the boys' robes and held on with all of her might. Ron was colossal so she had the biggest trouble holding him back from murdering Malfoy. The blonde just stared at the two advancing dangers warily. He knew what was coming and part of him wanted them to reach him. Hermione could tell this just by looking into his stormy, grey eyes.

"Run, Malfoy! Go! I can't hold them back much longer, and TRUST ME, you do NOT want them to reach you right now! Go!"

Malfoy suddenly seemed to notice Hermione behind the two snarling Gryffindors and saw how hard she was struggling. He gave her one curt nod, spun on his heel, and left the Great Hall.

"What the HELL did you do that for Hermione?!," snarled Ron. He was so angry he looked like smoke was going to come out of his ears at any moment. His eyes looked like they could kill her on the spot.

"Do you really think I would let you KILL someone, Ron? Even that slimy ferret, Malfoy? You must be mental. I will not have you two ruining your lives just to get vengeance on Malfoy. I WON'T!" She jabbed her finger into the redhead's chest for punctuation and to express her frustration, not just with this situation, but with everything that was going on in their lives.

The Great Hall's occupants were all staring and taking in the scene in front of them. Ron seemed to notice it finally, which meant his temper was cooling. He grabbed Hermione and Harry (who had just stared after Draco Malfoy with a look of venom on his face) and rushed them out of the Hall.

Ron enveloped Hermione in an awkward hug with his massive body. "I'm so sorry, 'Mione. I know you were always the level-headed one. But how the HELL did he get here?! And what made that rat think he could show his face in this school again after everything he's done? He's the reason Dumbledore's dead!"

"I know, Ron. I understand your anger and trust me, I feel it too. I would like nothing more than to wrap my hands around that slimy git's throat and squeeze the life out of him, but I can't. And I can't let you two kill him either. And don't try to tell me you wouldn't have. I know you too well."

Ron looked sheepish. "Well… yea. You're probably right."

The two finally seemed to notice the other occupant standing, staring off into space next to them.

"Harry?" Ron's voice asked timidly. Harry didn't seem to hear him. Hermione stepped closer to Harry and gently placed a hand on his forearm. He snatched it away with such force he almost took her arm with it. She gave him a wounded look. He had been on his guard so much lately he couldn't stand for ANYONE, not even his friends, to touch him. His empty gaze fixed on her.

"Goodnight, Hermione. Ron. I'll see you two in the morning."

With that he stalked off and headed toward the Gryffindor common room.

Hermione and Ron looked at each other and Hermione felt the frustrated tears well up in her chocolate eyes. Ron comforted her in the hallway while she wept.

"I don't know what to do anymore, Ron. He's so defensive and alone and he doesn't seem to want anything to do with us anymore. What should we do?" she sniffled into his shoulder.

"I don't know if there's anything we really CAN do. He needs to figure this out on his own and I think all we can do is be there for him."

"I don't know if that'll be good enough. Can you try talking to him, Ron? Can you try to see what we can do for him? He'll listen to you a lot faster than he'll listen to me."

The corner of Ron's mouth tipped down in a half-frown. "Yea. I'll try. We'll see if he listens this time."

"Thank you, Ron." Hermione was so grateful to have a best friend like Ron.

Hermione unlatched herself from Ron's iron grip and they headed toward the common room together, neither of them saying a word.

When they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, Hermione mumbled the password (Godric's Sword) and the portrait swung open to reveal the red and gold common room.

Some students lazed around the fireplace on the many large plush sofas surrounding it, while others sat at the tables around the edges of the room, either reading or just chatting and catching up with friends they hadn't seen over the summer holidays. Hermione had no interest in doing either. She just wanted to go upstairs, lay down on her bed, and sleep.

She tiredly climbed the staircase leading to the girls' dorms and reached her room. When she got inside she realized that one of her roommates was already there. Ginny Weasley.

Hermione smiled half-heartedly at Ginny, her best girlfriend. "Hello."

"Hi… So that episode in the Great Hall was interesting. I'm glad you grabbed Ron and… the both of them in time."

Hermione noticed how Ginny had intentionally left out Harry's name. So Ginny was still in love with Harry, and their break-up still hurt. Poor Ginny. Maybe that was just one of the reasons Harry was so… tense lately. Maybe he missed Ginny a lot too. That got her thinking about ways to get the two back together.

"Yea. Me too. I'm glad they didn't reach him. Your brother would've torn his head off."

Ginny grinned. "Maybe you should've let them go then. Not like the bastard doesn't deserve it."

Hermione laughed. "I know he does. But we don't want Ron and…" She decided that it was okay for her to say his name. "…Harry spending the rest of their lives in Azkaban."

"Hmm… I guess you're right."

Hermione opened her case and pulled out her nightgown. It was made of a flowing red silk material and clung to her curves in just the right places. She quickly changed into it and saw Ginny's eyes widen.

"Wow Hermione. Since when did you start wearing stuff like that? If any of the boys saw you he'd have a heart attack."

Hermione flushed."That's why none of the boys are going to see me. "

"When Parvati and Lavender get here you're never going to hear the end of it you know. The looks on their faces will be priceless." Ginny laughed.

"I guess you're right." Hermione could feel her cheeks heat up again and considered changing into her usual sweatpants and old t-shirt, but changed her mind. _Who cares what Parvati and Lavender think anyway? _Hermione just drifted off to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Hermione awoke in a cold sweat but she couldn't remember exactly why. All she remembered from her nightmare was a pair of cold, fearful, slate-grey eyes staring at her from darkness and a long scream. It really troubled her so she got up and checked the time. _3:12 AM. _Hermione grumbled to herself and dragged herself out of bed. She knew she wouldn't be getting any more sleep that night.

Hermione tossed on a robe and wandered downstairs. At first glance she didn't see anyone but when she looked around again she saw someone nestled in one of the armchairs by the fire. When she tip-toed closer, she realized it was Harry. She barely breathed for fear of him hearing her and exploding at her. He was so volatile lately she never knew when he would snap. It worried her greatly. She wanted her old Harry back.

She decided to take a chance and walked around in front of him. He tried to smile up at her. That was a good sign. She sat down on the arm of the chair he was occupying.

"Why are you up so early?" he asked.

"Honestly? I had a nightmare and couldn't get back to sleep. I don't remember it, though," she replied with a small frown.

"I know what that's like. I'm sorry to hear it." She didn't know how to reply to that. She didn't want to make him upset so she just didn't say anything.

Harry went back to staring into the fire and they sat in companionable silence for a while. The sun started to rise outside so she figured it was around 5:30 or so. Harry's friendly green eyes started to look haunted again. She wondered what was going through his mind that tortured him so badly.

"Harry? It's time to get ready for breakfast."

He turned those emerald eyes up to look at her and she could see the walls building again, brick by brick. But she had been given a new hope. They had been able to sit near each other for a couple of hours and he hadn't snapped at her at all. She started to puzzle out a way for that to happen again.

"Come on, love. Let's get you upstairs," she whispered.

He didn't say anything but got up and followed her to his room. She opened the door for him and he went inside. She headed back to her own room for a shower and to get dressed. Today was going to be a long day.

It was the first day of classes. She was (of course) taking Advanced everything. Her first class of the day was Advanced Arithmancy. She wondered if there would be anyone else she knew in there. All of her previous Arithmancy classes had consisted of a group of Ravenclaws and herself.

Hermione sighed deeply and headed to the Great Hall after getting dressed. She felt a little bit hungry after her long morning. Breakfast was a little more normal and more people started to talk. There was even a little bit of laughter. Ron came down first of the two boys, with his ex-girlfriend-turned-friend, Lavender Brown, in tow. They sat next to Hermione and Ron put about half of his usual amount of food on his plate. He even started nibbling at it which meant he was feeling a little better. She used to hate watching him scarf his food down like a starved dog but now she kind of missed it. She really wanted things to go back to normal.

When the doors opened to reveal Harry, Hermione caught her breath. She was worried he would be back in one of his dark moods, but he half-smiled at her and Ron so she knew he was at least a tiny bit better. His eyes were still haunted, though, and she doubted that would go away for a very long time. She knew a main reason behind that was the fact that he had seen Severus Snape murder Professor Dumbledore. Oh, how she could kill Snape if she got the chance. She had always hated him but now she had a longing in her heart to see him suffer. It was so unlike her that it actually frightened her. She was just glad that the ex-professor had gone into hiding after the murder, and no one had seen him since.

She went back to eating to take her mind off all of their troubles.

Every time the door opened her head snapped up for fear of seeing those cold silver eyes. She feared a repeat of last night's performance and didn't know if she could hold Harry and Ron back this time. But her fears were for naught. Draco Malfoy didn't show up all throughout breakfast. It made her wonder where he was. _Probably lurking around the dungeons picking on helpless first-years and killing little creatures that crossed his path. Of course he's following in his father's footsteps, becoming just as evil as Lucius_. But Hermione couldn't help remembering that defeated look his eyes had held when he'd entered the Great Hall the night before. _It was almost as if he had WANTED the boys to reach him. _She puzzled over that for a while.

The movements of people around her getting up and heading to their classes shook her out of her thoughts. She filed them away in the back of her mind to figure out later and got up herself to head to Advanced Arithmancy.

.ooOoo.

When Hermione entered her Arithmancy classroom, she was so surprised at what she saw that she tripped on an uneven tile and nearly fell flat on her face. Draco Malfoy was sitting at one of the eight double-seater desks, reading his Arithmancy textbook with a look of concentration on his long, pale face. She thanked God that he didn't notice her embarrassing stumble. She continued to stare in shock as she maneuvered herself to a desk as far away from his as possible in the tiny room.

Other students filed in and Professor Vector followed. Hermione noticed that she was correct in her assumption. The only two non-Ravenclaws in the class were herself and Malfoy. She almost laughed to herself but she was still too stunned.

Professor Vector walked about the room and greeted the class.

"Now I know that you are all sitting where you are comfortable, but comfort is not my goal for this class. I feel that students work most effectively in a place where they are not comfortable so I am going to take you all out of your comfort zones and we are going to have a seating chart."

She then proceeded to move students around and no one ended up sitting in the same place they began. Hermione's heart dropped when she heard her name called.

"Miss Hermione Granger. Lovely to have you in this class again. Your seat is now right over here, to the left of Mr. Fletcher."

_Oh God. That's right in front of Malfoy! _

She felt sick and wondered when the endless torturing would begin. She sat and waited… and waited… and waited. She nearly turned around in shock but caught herself. He hadn't even acknowledged her with a "Hey, Mudblood" or anything equally as foul.

Her stomach lifted a tiny bit and she turned to introduce herself to her partner. His name turned out to be Alan Fletcher and he was a pretty nice bloke, if not a little too inquisitive. He was a seventh-year Ravenclaw and was very much like herself. He spent most of his time in the library and took all advanced classes. She knew they would get on fine.

Hermione became increasingly uncomfortable during her conversation with Alan because of the eyes she felt scalding the back of her skull. She sneaked a glance behind her and brown eyes met silver. It was like she was trapped in his stare and the rest of the class disappeared. Hell, the rest of the WORLD disappeared it seemed to Hermione. It was the strangest feeling she had ever experienced, and that was saying a lot.

Malfoy's eyes stayed locked on hers but he wasn't glaring. He had a slight frown on his lips as he seemed to be searching her eyes for something. What he was looking for, she had no idea. She noticed that his irises were the color of storm clouds and then chastised herself for even thinking about what color his eyes were. Then it hit her… those were the same eyes that had stared, pleading, from the darkness in her dream! Then Malfoy broke the stare by glancing back down to his book. What felt like an eternity to Hermione was really just a couple of moments.

Hermione spun back around in her seat so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash. Her heart was racing in her chest and she felt like she was struggling for breath.

It took a couple more moments for her to realize that Alan was still talking to her.

"…and I really like to go camping with my brothers during the summer hols. How about you?"

"Wha… huh?" was her intelligent reply.

"I asked what you liked to do in your time out of school." He spoke slowly as if she were hard of hearing.

"Oh…. Well I really like to read and sometimes my friends Harry and Ron and I get together and spend time at Ron's house."

The eyes were back on her. She could tell because of the hairs lifting on the back of her neck. But she refused to turn around this time lest that whole interlude happen again. It freaked her out enough the first time. She didn't need a repeat performance.

"Ohhh! You're friends with Harry Potter, right? I think I've see you guys hanging out with that massive red-headed bloke, too."

"That massive red-headed bloke happens to be named Ron," she said dully. She didn't know why but it irritated her that he didn't care enough to know Ron's name when he so obviously cared that she hung out with Harry. Alan then proceeded to question her more about Harry. She let him know, politely of course, that Harry wasn't up for discussion. _God, what was it with these people and being so nosey about my best friend?_

She heard a tiny snort come from behind her and she whirled around ready to yell at Malfoy but he wasn't looking at her, though he was trying to mask his smirk. He looked back up at her and let the smirk flow free. His trademark smirk. The one that she hated. Ergh! She hated Malfoy!

Luckily for Malfoy, Professor Vector began her lesson and Hermione was quickly occupied with taking notes.

After what seemed like only a couple of minutes for Hermione, class ended and it was time for her to go to her next class, Advanced Ancient Runes.

.ooOoo.

By the end of the day, Hermione was exhausted. She had tons of homework even though it was the first day of classes, but that was because of her choosing all advanced classes. To be completely honest, she didn't mind it much. She actually enjoyed homework.

When it was time for dinner, Hermione, Ron, and Harry all headed out for the Great Hall at the same time. Ron and Hermione chatted idly about their classes on the way there while Harry stayed relatively silent unless directly spoken to. Ron and Hermione would throw him pitying glances every once in a while but Harry didn't seem to notice.

When they reached the Hall and sat down for dinner, conversation seemed to be pretty much back to normal. There were jokes tossed back and forth between the Gryffindors and lots of laughter surrounded them. It made Hermione smile. She was glad to hear her Gryffindors happy again. All except for one. Harry sat staring into his soup and didn't look up once. Everyone noticed but they all knew about his newly developed temper and didn't say anything. He ate in his own world then headed to bed before the rest of them.

Harry's attitude definitely dampened Hermione's good mood. She headed back to the common room before most of the other Gryffindors. When she got there, Harry was nowhere to be seen, although Ron and Lavender were thoroughly exploring each other's mouths on the couch. She frowned, disgusted. _Of course they're back together. We'll see how long it lasts this time before she scares him away again, the nitwit._ Knowing she couldn't do anything about it, she just sat down at one of the common room tables furthest away from the canoodling couple and finished her homework, which took only an hour or so.

Hermione headed back up to her room to find it unoccupied, changed into her nightgown, laid down on her bed, and fell asleep the second her head touched the pillow.

_Hermione was running through the deserted halls of Hogwarts, wearing only her silk nightgown. It was pitch black outside the windows and nearly just as dark inside the school itself. She knew something horrible was following her but she didn't know what it was. She heard the advancing footsteps behind her and ran faster. Her bare feet were getting raw with the force of her fleeing._

_She turned a corner into a darkened hallway and sprinted as fast as she could. She heard hideous laughter coming from behind her and she nearly screamed but her voice seemed to be lodged in her throat. She could feel the darkness creeping closer with every step. It was going to overtake her. She was going to die._

_She rounded another bend and stopped short. It was a dead end. She spun around wildly looking for someplace to hide when someone grabbed her from behind, covered her mouth, and dragged her into a dark alcove, one of the ones that housed a statue. Whoever it was pulled her down into a grate that led to some underground passageway and pressed her up against the wall. It was an incredibly tight squeeze, barely large enough for one person. She felt a warm chest pressed tightly against her back. She tried screaming. _

"_Shhhhh… He won't know we're here if you stay quiet," whispered a deep, musical, masculine voice._

_Hermione looked up into the face of the man who had grabbed her and saw pale white skin and beautiful stormy grey eyes. She was looking into the face of Draco Malfoy! That thought in itself made her breathing become shallow and her heart race even faster. But she didn't feel the urge to scream anymore and Malfoy read it on her face. He let go of her mouth._

_Both pairs of eyes went wide when they heard the footsteps of her attacker approaching dangerously close. She tried to slow her breathing more so it wouldn't be audible but it was pointless. She was just too terrified to be able to control it._

"_You can't hide forever. I WILL find you," the horrible voice said from above their hiding place. Malfoy knew she was close to sobbing so he covered her mouth again. He pressed his lips against her ear and whispered barely audibly "It's okay. You're fine. He won't find us. Shhh.."_

_She nodded imperceptibly. He pressed himself closer to her to keep her pinned to the wall. He didn't want her moving and accidentally making noise._

_Suddenly there were shouts from above and spells were cast back and forth. They could tell by the flashes of light flying in every direction. Then the clamoring moved further away and the hallway had become deserted again. Malfoy kept her pressed up against the wall with his hand on her mouth for what seemed like an eternity but was really probably only ten minutes or so._

_Slowly he inched as far away from her as he could in the small hole they were in. She moved away from the wall and looked around. What she thought at first was a passageway, she realized was really just a drainage hole. It was about seven feet deep and about four square feet around, with small pipes around the bottom for the water to drain out of. _

_Hermione was distracted when she realized that Malfoy was still incredibly close, and suddenly she felt rather warm, even in only her nightgown._

"_Oh. Ahem. Uhhh... We should probably…umm… get out of here now, right? Do you think it's safe?" she whispered, flushing bright red._

"_I think we'll be fine. Here, let me help you up." _

_She lifted her leg as much as she could so he could put his hands under her feet and pushed her up inch by inch until she could push the grate back again. He was really strong to be able to lift her so slowly, she noticed, then flushed even brighter. She peeked her head out and around and he was right. Nothing was there. Finally, she was all the way out. He hoisted himself out, turning down her proffered hand, and closed the grate again. He grabbed her hand and they inched their way out of the maze of hallways. _

"_Why is Hogwarts so dark right now?" she whispered._

"_Voldemort does this partially to scare his enemies and partially to make it easier for his minions to see. You see, most of the creatures he's gotten to join his side are dark creatures, ones who see better at night," Malfoy explained in a whisper._

"_You are certainly right about that, young Malfoy," the hideous voice that was tracking her hissed from the shadows. Malfoy threw her behind him while drawing his wand, and told her to run. She stubbornly refused, clinging to his shirt like a child. She tried backing away and pulling him with her but he wouldn't budge._

_The creature stepped out of the shadows and Hermione screamed in horror. Its massive, 10-foot tall body was that of a hairy, black scorpion, but the most horrible part about it was that, in the place of the scorpion's face, was a grotesque, distorted human face. It was awful and Hermione felt sick to her stomach._

"_Run, Hermione! Now!"_

"_No, Draco! I won't leave you!" Hermione started to cry, she felt so helpless._

"_You should've listened to the boy. Now it's too late for you." The evil monster cackled right before it struck. The giant stinger came down and impaled Malfoy's chest drawing him into the air and flinging him against the stone wall. Hermione screamed again, this time in outrage. She whipped out her wand and an ancient spell she'd never heard before tumbled out of her lips._

"**Per mos superum, ego ordo vos dimitto. **

**Vos valeo hic haud magis. **

**Per nomen quicumque est bonus, ego terminus vestri reign obscurum.**

**Ego iam ordo vos morior.**

**Absum, everto, quod nunquam reverto."**

_The evil monster's human face let out a horrid shriek and the body exploded into a cloud of dust._

_Hermione ran over and lifted Malfoy's limp body onto her lap, placing one hand on the gaping wound on his chest, right where his heart would be, not caring one bit that his blood was now covering her arms and hands. She cradled him close to her. When she looked into his eyes, she saw that he was still alive, but just barely. His eyes pleaded up at her while blood trailed from his perfect lips. He coughed and more blood came out, adding to the pool already surrounding his body. He tried to smile at her but she knew it took a lot of effort. _

"_I'm so so sorry, Draco. I'm sorry," she sobbed into his neck._

_He lifted his pale, long-fingered hand to cup her cheek. She turned her face into his hand and nuzzled it._

"_It's okay," he whispered just audibly enough for her to hear him. "You're the one that needs to live. Live for me, Hermione."_

_With those last words his beautiful, stormy eyes went glassy and his head tipped to the side. She knew he was gone forever._


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3:**

Hermione awoke with a scream and realized that tears were pouring down her face. Ginny was beside her bed in an instant and she heard Parvati and Lavender muttering to themselves in their beds.

"Hermione, what happened?!" Ginny cried. "Are you okay? Did something hurt you?"

Hermione's breath was coming in gasps as she tried to tell Ginny she was fine.

"No, no, Gin, I'm fine. Just a nightmare. It was just a nightmare. Oh GOD." She was still sobbing.

Ginny grabbed her by her shoulders and hoisted her up. Hermione clung to her friend with all she had and sobbed into Ginny's flaming hair. Ginny whispered soothing words in her ear.

The two girls started when they heard the shouts from downstairs. Hermione instantly recognized the voices. It was Ron and Harry and they were trying to get up the charmed staircase. Their efforts were pointless because any time a boy stepped foot on it, the stairs went diagonal, turning into a slide and sending them back down to the bottom. The girls could tell that that wasn't stopping the boys from trying, though, because of the muffled curses and yells.

"You should probably let them know you're okay. Ron sounds like he's going to start tearing things apart any second." Ginny let go of Hermione.

"Yea. You're probably right, Gin… Thank you so much." Hermione tried to smile at her friend but didn't succeed.

Hermione got up out of her tear-soaked bed and walked to the door, trying to compose herself. She took a deep breath and opened it. Harry and Ron and a couple of other boys were at the bottom of the staircase, but only Ron and Harry were trying to scale it at the moment. When they noticed her, they stopped. But when Ron saw how distraught she looked he tried again full force.

"Stop! Stop it Ronald, everything's okay!" Hermione shouted. It settled him enough that he stopped and allowed her to come down the stairs to them. All of the boys except Harry and Ron walked back up to their rooms muttering to themselves.

"What the hell happened, Hermione?! That shriek woke the whole House! I thought you woke up to find Voldemort in bed with you or something! Merlin, Hermione, don't scare us like that!" Ron exclaimed at her.

"Oh yea, Ron, because I was TRYING to have a nightmare and wake everyone up!"

Ron at least had the mind to look sheepish. "So what DID happen, 'Mione? What caused you to scream like that?"

"I had a nightmare, that's all." Hermione tried to hold back the tears that wanted to escape with just the thought of that awful dream, but it was futile.

The tears trickled down her face. She was still so trapped in the darkness of her dream but she knew she couldn't tell Ron and Harry about it. They would never understand how she could've cared so much about Malfoy's death. Hell, she couldn't understand it either. _Why am I thinking about him so much?!_ Noticing her tears, Ron pulled her against his chest and held her while she cried. Harry patted her on the back awkwardly but walked away. Girls' tears made him extremely uncomfortable.

Ron just held her while she sobbed and didn't question her again until she was done. He could be thoughtful when he wanted to be, she realized with a small smile. She didn't know what she would do without her boys.

When the waterworks finally ended with her last couple of sniffles, she pulled away from Ron. He looked down into her face solemnly.

"So do you want to tell me what your dream was about now?"

"Ummm…not really Ron. I just really want to forget about it for the moment." She sighed. "I can't think about it anymore. God, it was so awful."

Ron stood silently for a couple of seconds. "Okay, 'Mione. But you're going to tell me later. This is so out of character for you and it could be important. You know how Harry's dreams are. Maybe yours are like his this time."

The thought made her start crying again.

"Oh Merlin. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. God, I'm stupid. I'm sorry." He looked like he wanted to smack himself in the forehead.

"No, Ron. I won't let this dream become reality. I won't."

With that she hugged him again and walked back upstairs. She quickly threw on her cloak and shoes and headed back down to the common room. Seeing that the coast was clear, that Ron and Harry had headed back up to their rooms, she wandered out into the hallway. She intended to go to the library to do some studying up on that monster in her dreams. She'd never heard of anything like it but she needed to know whether it existed or not.

Hermione kept to the shadows, not knowing exactly what time it was, and not wanting to be put in detention for being out after (or before?) hours by Filch and his nasty cat Mrs. Norris. She should've asked Harry if she could borrow his invisibility cloak but she was in such a rush she didn't even think about it.

When she reached the doors to the library, she was happy to realize they were unlocked.

_So it must be after 5:00 then. _

She cheered silently to herself as she padded her way into her sanctuary. The librarian, Madam Pince, nodded to her when she entered then didn't give her a second glance. Hermione was probably the only student that the grumpy old librarian wouldn't give a second glance to for being at the library at 5 in the morning. She smiled to herself.

Hermione headed straight for the Magical Creatures section, not bothering to look around the rest of the library. She skimmed through the titles on the seemingly endless shelves, searching for something useful. Then she found it, Dark Magical Creatures and Where to Find Them by Wesley Taggart.

"Thank you, Mr. Taggart," Hermione whispered to herself. She was truly excited about finding this book. Her excitement turned to trepidation as she walked to a table to read the book. She opened it on her way there but didn't get a chance to read any of it. As she looked up to pick a table, she realized that someone was already sitting at one. That someone stopped her dead in her tracks. It was Malfoy, and he seemed to be entranced by the book he was holding in his long, slim fingers, a book titled Dark Creatures of the Forest.

Hermione's book slipped out of her suddenly numb fingers and slammed into the stone floor with a bang, which startled Malfoy into looking up. He then looked down at the book she dropped and his forehead creased. He looked confused and startled by the title. When their eyes met, it was like that time in the classroom when the whole rest of the world stopped and it was only the two of them.

Hermione looked away first this time. She felt like she just needed to get away so she headed back into the shelves to put the book back. Malfoy stalked her into the cases.

"What the HELL are you playing at, Granger?" Malfoy's voice accused.

"ME?! What are YOU playing at, Malfoy?!" Hermione was in the process of hyperventilating, she was so angry. Hell, they hadn't even said a word to each other this year. Hermione was furious for reasons she couldn't explain.

"Why are you reading a book about dark creatures then, hmm?" Malfoy sneered.

"What? Am I not allowed to? I thought I was free to read any book I wanted! Why are YOU reading a book on dark creatures, Malfoy?" Hermione turned his accusation back on him.

"Probably for the same reason you are," Malfoy replied.

They both seemed to realize what his response meant at the same time. They both got utterly silent and didn't know what to say to each other. Hermione practically ran past Malfoy and out the library doors. Madam Pince hissed angrily after her for daring to be noisy in the library.

Hermione hurried on and didn't look back until she heard footsteps pounding after her.

"Wait, Granger. Hold on a minute. I think we need to talk about this if it's what we both think it is."

"I don't think I need to talk to you at all, you prat," Hermione responded.

"Well that's mature, Granger. Go ahead and act like a child if you feel the need, then," Malfoy said dully, and his footsteps stopped.

Finally, Hermione stopped her speed-walking. She turned around and the look on Malfoy's face startled her. He looked frustrated, but he wasn't sneering at her. That fact alone kept her from snapping at him.

"Are you ready to stop running now?" Malfoy asked and it seemed to hold a double-entendre. Hermione frowned.

He turned on his heel and headed back for the library, inclining his head at her to follow, just like any rich prat that was used to being obeyed without question would do. She did follow, against her better judgment.

When she entered the library again, Madam Pince gave her a venomous glare but she just kept walking. They headed for the table that Malfoy had been occupying previously.

"Go get that book you just had, Granger," Malfoy ordered.

"And what makes you think you have the right to order me around, Malfoy?" she sneered at him.

He rolled his eyes and sighed, then got up, strode to the bookcase, pulled out the book, and tossed it at her, a little harder than she deemed necessary. He then proceeded to sit down and open his own book again. He gave her a look that plainly ordered her to sit down, but since he hadn't actually SAID anything, she decided to let it go and sat down.

They avoided the topic for a long time, choosing to sit and read their own books rather than to actually face each other.

Finally, Malfoy broke the silence with a short, "I had a nightmare."

Hermione looked up from her book and their eyes met. She thought about saying something snide as a reply then thought better of it. She would just tell the truth and get it over with. She could handle his presence for a short time, especially since, for reasons unbeknownst to Hermione, it seemed like Malfoy was making an effort to be a mature adult for the first time in his life.

"Me too," she replied.

"So what nasty creature was in yours?" he asked.

"I don't really know actually. I came here to find out if it even exists…" She got a faraway look in her eyes and her gaze became haunted.

"That makes both of us." Then Malfoy asked hesitantly, "…Was yours a scorpion thing with a human face?"

Her eyes snapped over to him in surprise. "Yes…" she whispered quietly. Before this acknowledgement, they could have gone on fooling themselves peacefully. Now this whole ordeal hung like a thick fog in the air between them.

"Shit," Malfoy said.

"For the first time in our lives, I agree with you. Shit," Hermione replied. She then giggled hysterically.

Malfoy looked at her as if she had grown two heads and her arms had turned purple.

"I really don't see what's so funny about this situation, Granger. But if something is, feel free to enlighten me," he said drolly.

"This is just too bizarre. How the hell did we end up having the same nightmare? It just doesn't make sense. I mean, it was only a dream, right? It's not like the you in the dream was really you at all." Hermione tried to puzzle it out in her head.

"What are you on about, Granger? Of course it was me. We both played a part in our COMBINED dream, I wasn't just observing yours. For someone who's supposed to be so brilliant, you sure are dense sometimes," Malfoy replied frustratedly.

She glared at him. "Well, first of all, we haven't even established that we had the EXACT same dream. Maybe we should each tell our version of it. You first."

He just looked at her for a moment. "Fine. In MY dream, I was wandering the hallway and heard pounding footsteps behind me. I hid in the alcove in a dead end and heard you coming. Somehow I knew that you were you so I grabbed you when you came around the corner. I then proceeded to pull you down into a hole and push you against the wall, covering your mouth in the process." He stopped when he saw her turning pink, then continued on with a light in his eye. "When we heard the thing approaching I pushed you further into the wall, pressed my body against your back and whispered in your ear that everything would be fine… And judging by the look on your face this is definitely the same dream."

She gathered her composure and looked into his eyes. "In my dream, the scorpion thing stabbed you through the chest and you died in my arms. Is that the same ending for you?"

He lost the teasing light in his eyes."Yes. I died in my dream as well," he replied, choosing to ignore the part about her holding him.

Hermione didn't reply to that. They both sat silently for a while. Hermione broke the silence by asking, "So how do you explain it then? What does this mean for us?"

"I honestly don't know, Granger, but I doubt it's anything good. So have you had any more dreams like this?" he asked.

"I had a dream the night before that I don't remember much of. I just remember your eyes looking at me from the dark. All I could see was your eyes. And they looked scared."

"I had a similar dream except it was YOUR eyes… What the hell does this mean, Granger?"

"I have no idea. Maybe we should ask Dumble…. Oh," she turned bright red at her mistake. She couldn't believe that she actually FORGOT Dumbledore was dead for a minute. She could've smacked herself. Instead she knew what she needed to do.

"Well since Dumbledore's death is a huge pink elephant in the room, maybe we should just talk about it and get it over with."

He looked shocked and didn't speak for a while.

"I didn't kill him, Granger. You know that. So I don't really think it's necessary to talk about it."

"Are you kidding me, Malfoy? How is it not necessary? I never thought I would see your face again and then you had the audacity to show up here, which nearly got you hexed to death, or hell, maybe even beaten to death by my best friends. And now we're being forced to speak to each other on what I'm assuming will turn out to be a regular basis. How is it not necessary to talk about it?"

He just looked at her with a haunted look, obviously remembering that night.

"Talk, Malfoy. You need to talk about it. I can tell. And I need to hear it."

He stared at her for a while longer but then gave in. "Fine. But I'll only tell you this once. It's not exactly something I want to relive," he hissed, lowering his voice so that no one would overhear them. "Killing Dumbledore was Voldemort's test for me to see if I was worthy of becoming a Death Eater, something I'd been desperate to become basically my whole life." At Hermione's rolling eyes, Draco snapped, "Look, I didn't say it was a good story or that it's who I am now so if you're going to be so immature about it I'll just stop now."

"No. I'm sorry. Continue," Hermione said. Since she seemed genuine in her apology, he continued.

"Anyways, it was Voldemort's task for me. He told me that he would kill me and my parents if I didn't succeed, yet when the time finally came, I couldn't do it and Dumbledore told me I wasn't going to, that I wasn't a killer. That he would protect me and my family if we came over to the side of Light. I was putting my wand down when the Death Eaters and that nasty werewolf Greyback burst in. Then Snape came in and it all happened so fast. Dumbledore was pleading with Snape and then Snape _Avada Kedavraed_ him and he fell off the tower and landed in the grass below. It was like a dream. It didn't feel real." Malfoy hesitated, then focused his eyes again and said, "But it WAS real. And there's nothing anyone can do to take it back so there's no reason to dwell on it."

Hermione was surprised but she didn't know what to say to him. She guessed she understood his twisted logic for once.

They just drifted off into silence again.

After a while, Hermione asked, "So do you have any idea what that thing was in our dream?"

"No. I've never heard of such a thing and I haven't seen it mentioned in this worthless book either." He looked like he was going to grumble to himself, but of course, a Malfoy never grumbles.

"Well, let's just keep looking. If it's real and we have something to worry about, then we'll find it." Hermione attempted a smile at him. He just looked at her in shock, gave a quick upturn of his lips and looked back down at his book. It threw him off that she was trying to be… un-hostile… towards him. He wasn't used to it and to be completely honest, he wasn't sure that he liked it either. It was obvious that they were entering uncharted territory and he was the kind of bloke that like his territory mapped out several times over before he entered it. He just shook his head and continued reading.

After sitting in the library for two hours and not finding any mention of the evil dream creature, Hermione and Draco were in right foul moods. Whenever one would speak, the other would snap in response. They quickly realized that they just needed to stop for the morning. Plus, classes were going to start in about an hour. Hermione grabbed her things and left Malfoy to his research without a word. He didn't even look at her, just nodded to acknowledge her departure. She was fine with that.

She practically threw herself out of the library doors and headed back up to Gryffindor Tower. When she reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, she snapped the password at her (to which the Fat Lady huffed a, "How rude... Students these days…", and entered the common room. Ron was sitting at a table with Seamus playing wizard's chess, with Lavender perched on his lap, and by the look of things, Ron was whooping Seamus, not that that was any surprise. Ron was the best wizard's chess player she had ever come across. Seeing the normalcy of common room activities cooled her mood a bit.

Hermione's mood heated up again as soon as she saw Harry staring into the fireplace like he had the previous morning with that horrible, un-Harry-like look in his eyes. The one that changed them from their brilliant emerald to a dull moss. She hated it. She missed that light he used to have, the one that let you know that he was laughing on the inside. It made her heart sink and her mood become even less pleasant.

Ron finally seemed to notice that Hermione had entered the room.

"Hey 'Mione. Where'd you run off to so early?" he asked.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by his voice and tersely replied, "The library."

Ron could hear the frustration in her voice and decided not to test it. He just went back to playing with Seamus. Seamus looked very flustered and his hair stood up in all directions like he'd been tugging on it in frustration. It reminded her of Harry's constant mussing of his hair and she frowned. She'd had enough with his mood and decided now was the time to do something about it.

Hermione stalked over to where Harry was sitting.

"Come on, Harry. Get up and come with me. We need to talk," she growled.

When he looked at her, he had a glint of anger in his eyes, but that didn't stop her. She was angry herself and he saw a matching glint in her eyes. He decided it was best not to argue with Hermione when she got this way. He got up and followed her out of the common room with the full intention to give her an excuse and blow her off to head back to his dorm and lock himself in his room. She wouldn't be able to drag him out of there and he would be left alone to his thoughts once again.

Hermione walked all the way out until she reached the lake and sat down. He followed after her but didn't sit down. When she looked at him pointedly, he ran a hand through his mussed up hair in frustration.

"I don't want to deal with this right now, Hermione. I just want to be alone."

"I don't care what you want, Harry. I'm your friend and you need to talk to me. Please just SIT DOWN."

He growled something under his breath but sat down anyways. He was never one to disappoint a friend.

"There's nothing to talk about, Hermione. Why can't you just drop it?"

She just stared at him. He knew that she knew he was lying but he didn't care. He just wanted to escape this conversation like he'd been doing for weeks. But deep down, he knew she deserved to hear the truth.

He growled in frustration once more. "I don't know what you want from me, Hermione. I don't know what to tell you."

"Well you can start by telling me why you're in such a foul mood. I'm your friend and I'm here for you, Harry. You don't have to face this alone." She whispered the last part and cast her eyes down to the grass.

"Oh, Hermione. I truly am sorry but it has nothing to do with you, and whether you like it or not, it is something I have to face alone. I have to find the Horcruxes. I have to destroy them. And I have to face Voldemort and you know very well that I'm not going to get you involved in any of it." She tried to respond but he lifted a hand to silence her. "No, Hermione. I won't let you or Ron get involved. I couldn't bear to lose you two also. You're the only family I have left and I REFUSE to be responsible for your deaths."

When he stopped talking, she decided it was safe to speak.

"Harry, I know that neither Ron nor I could possibly begin to understand what you're going through, but YOU can't understand how hard it is for US to sit here day after day seeing the mess you're becoming and knowing that you won't let us in. It hurts us both so bad and I KNOW you have this ridiculous notion that you have to face this horrible task on your own but you DON'T. Ron and I are both MORE than willing to die for you and you know it…"

Harry cut her off. "But that's my POINT, Hermione. I KNOW you would both sacrifice yourselves for me but I can't allow that. I couldn't bear to lose either of you, ESPECIALLY knowing that it was my fault. Both of my parents AND Sirius died sacrificing themselves for me. I can't lose you two too, especially not that way." Frustrated tears were shining in his eyes and he was staring at the ground. He whispered, "I love you both too much to let that happen."

Hermione lifted his face with her finger. "We love you too, Harry. And that's why we can't let you go through this alone. You think about how YOU would feel if either Ron or I got hurt but you don't think about how WE would feel if the same happened to you. We couldn't bear to lose you either, Harry. You need to let us help you. Stop turning away from us. We NEED you. We need the old Harry back. It kills us to see you hurting like this. I refuse to allow it any longer. If any of us died in this battle, God forbid, I don't want our last memories together to be ones filled with pain and loneliness. I want them to be filled with laughter and happiness. Don't let your worries keep that from happening."

She dropped her hand from his chin. "I need my old Harry back."

With that, he closed his eyes. He looked ashamed and she almost wished she could take it back. Then his eyes opened and they were emerald again.

"Thank you, Hermione. I needed to hear that. I guess I knew it all along but I thought the only way to protect you guys was to push you away. I should've know better that you wouldn't allow it. I'm sorry, 'Mione. I'll try to be better."

He gave her a half-smile and she could see the Harry she knew and loved in it. He leaned toward her and wrapped her up in a warm hug. She hugged him with everything she had.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4:**

The rest of the week passed by quickly and before Hermione knew it, it was Saturday. Harry and Ron were sitting in the common room dueling it out at wizard's chess (Harry was the only one who could ever beat Ron) and Hermione was spread out on a couch writing an essay that wasn't due until the end of the next month. She always was the type to finish everything obscenely early. She couldn't help smiling every time she looked up. Harry had been trying hard since their talk to prove to her that he had taken to heart what she had said.

After their talk that day, Harry and Hermione had entered the common room together and Harry'd challenged Ron to a game of wizard's chess. Ron's jaw had dropped and he'd stared bug-eyed at Harry until Hermione had cleared her throat and nudged him toward the game board.

"Wow, mate. Good to have you back," Ron had said cheerfully. He'd enveloped Harry in a crushing hug and only let him go after Harry'd grunted out a pained, "Uh... Yea, mate. I'm glad to be back too but you're cutting off my air supply."

Ron'd turned red and let him go. "Ummm… So how about this game? It will be exciting to crush you again after such a long time."

"You wish! We'll just see who gets crushed…" Harry's voice had trailed off as they'd walked across the room to duke it out.

Hermione's eyes had glistened and a huge smile had plastered her face. "My boys….," she'd said to herself.

Just thinking about it now made her smile. She was so happy to have things back to normal. Well, relatively normal, that is. Every once in a while she would catch Harry staring off, back in his land of nightmares, with that empty, glazed look, but it wasn't nearly as often as previously. She knew it would just take him a while to completely get over his fears. He was strong and she knew that probably better than anybody. She had hope that all would all be back to complete normalcy in due time.

Hermione's past few days of classes and her observation of Harry had kept her mind completely occupied. She would wake up every morning after having nightmares similar to the first one she had had, but she could never remember them and barely thought about them after her days got started.

She hadn't paid any attention to Malfoy, either, and barely noticed him in her Arithmancy class. He seemed just as occupied. They hadn't spoken since that day in the library except for the snide comments he would throw at her, Harry, and Ron in the hallways when he was with his cronies. Hermione noticed that while his words were the same as they had been the previous years, his heart just didn't seem to be in it. When he'd confronted them in the years past, you could hear the venom and hatred in his words, but this year, they just seemed empty. When she wasn't too busy to think about it (which was rarely, with the amount of work she had to do), she would puzzle about why he was acting so differently. She just couldn't figure it out.

At lunch Saturday afternoon, Hermione, Ron, and Harry were sitting together, joking around about Fred and George's newest creation, Pepper Pops (candy so spicy it made fire come out of Colin Creevey's mouth and nose and smoke come out of his ears when the twins tested it on him), when a beautiful white eagle flew over their table and dropped a note into Hermione's lap.

She looked shocked for a second, then picked it up and opened the seal. The front only read "H.G." in flowing, aristocratic handwriting. She didn't know who it could possibly be from. When she opened it and saw who the writer was, she immediately put it under the table so no one else would see. The inside simply read, "Meet me tonight. 10:00., same spot. –DM."

Hermione flushed and didn't know why. It shocked her greatly that he would even bother to communicate with her at all, especially in a way that might be noticed by one of his cronies. Surely they would recognize his eagle. It wasn't like everybody could afford to have THAT as their mail-delivery system.

She immediately lit the note on fire under the table and let the ashes fall to the floor. She glanced over to the Slytherin table and her gaze was immediately drawn to Malfoy's platinum head. Pansy Parkinson was seated as close to him as physically possible without being in his lap and was trying to gain his attention by clinging to his chest and whispering in his ear. Hermione didn't WANT to know what the pathetic, simpering girl was saying to him.

The part that surprised her the most was that he wasn't paying attention to Pansy at all. He was looking directly at Hermione, waiting for a response, she guessed. She nodded imperceptibly and turned back to the conversation. The entire exchange couldn't have taken more than two seconds.

.ooOoo.

Neither Hermione nor Draco noticed the brown eyes watching the whole exchange with morbid curiosity. Ginny Weasley was officially confused about what she had just seen. Part of her told herself that it didn't happen, that Hermione would never look at Malfoy with anything less than pure, unadulterated hatred. She filed that information away in the back of her mind. She decided she would watch Hermione more closely now and ask questions later if the need arose.

.ooOoo.

At the Slytherin table, Draco was trying hard to ignore the leech that was pressed against his side, more commonly known as Pansy Parkinson. He'd grown tired of her endless simpering the past year. He didn't understand why she didn't just take the never-ending flow of hints that he wasn't interested in her. Could she really be that dull? Judging by the things she was whispering in his ear, the answer was yes.

"Oh, Drakie. Let's go back to the common room. I have something to show you. Come on. Let's leave everyone here and go. No one is in there right now. We could have some time alone. Let's go, baby. Spend some time with me," she crooned.

Just thinking about what her idea of "spending time together" entailed sickened him. Not that he hadn't taken advantage of it once or twice when he had been younger and stupid. Even then, she had disgusted him, but he hadn't cared enough to stop himself. He was much stronger now and hadn't come close to allowing that nasty girl to touch him in years, though she tried every day.

The worst part of the whole situation was that his father fully intended to have them married to each other as soon as he graduated from Hogwarts. There were very few things he dreaded more than marrying Pansy Parkinson, but unfortunately, one of those few things was suffering the punishment his father would inflict should Draco disobey his orders. He rubbed his side absent-mindedly remembering one such punishment. His ribs had been bruised for weeks afterward and he still had the scars to show for his many other punishments. He shivered involuntarily at the memory.

"Oh, Drakie. Come with me. You're shivering. I know how to warm you up," she purred in his ear.

That was it. He shoved her away from him violently and nearly sent her toppling to the floor. She looked at him angrily but didn't say anything. She knew better than to anger the Prince of Slytherin. He wrinkled his nose at her in disgust, shoved himself up from the table, and left without a word. His mindless followers / bodyguards, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle dropped their handfuls of food and followed him out of the Great Hall.

"Wow, Pansy. You've really done it this time. I don't know why you keep trying to fuck him. He has no interest in you," Blaise Zabini chided from his spot at the table, smirking at her.

Blaise may be beautiful, but he was always so cruel to her. She knew he was making fun of her because of Draco's endless rejections. She also knew that he rubbed salt in her wounds, so to speak, because he wanted her for himself.

"Fuck you, Blaise! Mind your own business!" she yelled.

"Oh, but Draco IS my business. Or don't you remember?" he goaded her.

She turned red in anger and hated that she DID remember. He had been ordered by Lucius Malfoy to keep an eye on things in the school, especially Draco. Lucius used any way he could to keep eyes on the inside at Hogwarts and he adored Blaise, probably more than his own son. Word of that hadn't reached Draco, though. While all of the Slytherins feared Draco Malfoy, they feared Lucius tenfold. They didn't want to endure one of his punishments for letting it slip that he was paying Blaise Zabini to keep an eye on his son.

It pissed Pansy off royally, knowing full well how badly it would hurt Draco to know his father was doting on Blaise when all he showed Draco was scorn.

It also pushed Pansy's buttons because a main reason behind Blaise's acceptance of the task was his own interest in Pansy. She knew full well how many Slytherin women, and even some from the other Houses (though he would never admit it), were throwing themselves at him daily.

If it weren't for Draco, Blaise would be the Prince of Slytherin. Luckily for him though, he didn't have a desire to be. He was perfectly content being the second-in-command. Draco would show him his place if he even made one step toward trying to take over the throne. That was one of the reasons she adored him so much. Because of his power. And she wished he would let her be his queen but it was obvious that wasn't going to happen any time soon.

She pushed herself up from the table too, not wanting to deal with Blaise's laughing midnight-black eyes any longer, and practically flew to the dungeons.

.ooOoo.

Things were certainly getting weird, Hermione thought when she saw Malfoy shove Pansy off of him and nearly knock her to the floor. She could see the fury on his face when he got up and stormed out of the hall, his goons trailing behind him. She watched Malfoy until he left and then turned her eyes back to the drama unfolding at the Slytherin table.

She watched as Blaise Zabini said something to Pansy that turned her face splotchy and made her snap back at him. Then she watched as they verbally sparred back and forth, Pansy with embarrassment and anger on her pug-like face, and Blaise with a cool, cocky smirk on his smooth, dark face. It was obvious who was winning their verbal war, especially when Pansy got up and stormed out of the doors after Malfoy. It was truly frightening how much Zabini reminded Hermione of the Malfoy she hated from previous years. He was cruel and conniving and seemed to enjoy the pain he caused others if the dark grin that was spreading across his lips was anything to go by.

After the scene had ended, Hermione turned back to Ron and Harry to listen to their conversation on the Chudley Cannons (Ron's favorite quidditch team) but she realized the conversation had ceased. Both Harry and Ron had turned to watch the Slytherins along with most of the rest of the Great Hall's occupants.

"I wonder what THAT was about," Ron said curiously.

"I don't know," Harry replied.

"I don't think I want to know. Who really cares about Slytherin drama anyway?" added Hermione.

With that, the conversation at the Gryffindor table started up again, which led to the other tables' conversations starting up again. The Great Hall forgot about the interlude between Pansy and Blaise as quickly as they noticed it.

When there were no more distractions from the Slytherins, and Harry and Ron had started up about the Cannons again, Hermione zoned out. She never did care much for quidditch. She only watched the games to show support for her House and for Harry and Ron. Unbeknownst to them, her main reason for watching, though, was to make sure that neither of them hurt themselves too irreparably.

Her zoning out led her mind back to the dream she and Draco had shared. She needed to find out, and soon, if that creature really existed. She didn't know why it still scared her so much. _It was just a dream… right?_ How she wished that Dumbledore was there to explain it to her. Especially the fact that Malfoy's dreams and her own now seemed to be connected.

Just thinking about it made her stomach flip because it reminded her of her and Malfoy's meeting that night. She suddenly knew what she had to do. As she rose from the table with her purpose in mind, she didn't feel Ginny's questioning stare on her back. She said a quick goodbye and exited the Great Hall.

.ooOoo.

Hermione strode quickly across the grounds to the hut on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. She had realized during lunch who could help answer her questions about the beast from her dream. She didn't know why she hadn't thought of it before.

She knocked lightly on the massive door and heard loud barking from inside.

"Oh hush yeh grea' beast," Hagrid's voice boomed from inside.

The half-giant opened the door looking frazzled. His face lit up when he realized who was visiting him.

"'Hermione! It's great teh see yeh! What're yeh doin' here? Where's Harry and Ron? Surely yeh aren't fightin' agin? Oh come in, come in. I've got some rock cakes 'bout to come outta the oven."

Hermione smiled at seeing her friend again. She hadn't seen him since Bill and Fleur Weasley's wedding. She entered the hut as Hagrid was pulling the rock cakes out of the oven. She had learned not to flinch at the sight of them. They were terribly hard and she could never eat them but she took one anyway so as not to hurt Hagrid's feelings.

She sat down on his oversized, beat up couch and he took a seat on one of his stray chairs.

"So what're yeh comin' ter see me fer?" he asked.

"Firstly, I wanted to say hello. It's really great to see you again, Hagrid." She smiled at him and he smiled back.

"S'nice ter see yeh too, Hermione. But yeh didn't come ter say hello, did yeh?" he asked.

"Actually, Hagrid. I have a question about a creature. It's a dark creature that was in a dream of mine and I wanted to know if anything like it exists. I figured you'd be the perfect one to ask about it."

Hagrid almost glowed with the knowledge that Hermione thought he would be the best at something.

"Well, o'course, Hermione. What kind of beas' are yeh talkin' about?"

"It's a massive creature that has the body of a scorpion. The only thing that's not scorpion is its face. It has a human face, Hagrid. It's awful."

The color drained from his face and he swallowed hard, looking shocked.

"So you know of a creature like that, then?" she asked, reading his response correctly.

"Yea. I know of summat like it. The beas' yer talkin' about hasn' bin seen'n hundred's o' years. Everybody thought it was extinct, far's I know."

The look on Hagrid's face told her everything she needed to know about the creature. There were very, very few creatures that Hagrid feared. He had even planned on raising a dragon on his own until it had been taken away from him. But it was obvious that Hagrid feared this creature, and badly.

"What's it called, Hagrid? I need to know," Hermione urged him to finish.

"They're called Nexaddos. Death-Bring'rs. Grindelwald was the firs' wizard teh ever git the evil creatures teh join a human cause. 'Afore him they stayed up in the forests and killed anyone that crossed their paths. Pure evil creatures they were. They were all s'posed ter've bin killed off when Dumbledore took down Grindelwald. Why'd yeh wanna know 'bout 'em? Heck, how'd yeh even hear 'bout 'em? The ministry erased all trace of 'em outta the history books." Hagrid looked really concerned for her, and fearful at the same time.

"I just dreamt about one, Hagrid. I didn't hear about it from anyone or anything."

"I don' understand. Yeh hadta've heard 'bout 'em someplace, or else yeh wouldn've dreamt 'bout 'em."

"But that's the thing, Hagrid. I had never heard of anything like them before my dream. It was horrible. One was inside Hogwarts and was chasing me. It killed…. a student. I was really upset and a spell just came to me that I'd never heard before. I said the spell and the… Nexaddo… screamed and exploded into dust. Then I woke up."

Hagrid looked at her in shock. "D'yeh think yeh kin remember the spell, Hermione? ''Nough teh say it agin?"

"Ummm… I don't know, Hagrid. Let me think. Ummm… something like…" As she was trying her hardest to remember the spell, it just clicked into her head and she remembered it perfectly. "Oh my gosh. I remember every word. It was, _'Per mos superum, ego ordo vos dimitto. Vos valeo hic haud magis. Per nomen quicumque est bonus, ego terminus vestri reign obscurum. Ego iam ordo vos morior. Absum, everto, quod nunquam reverto.'_"

Hagrid stared open-mouthed at her and his giant beard quivered. When he seemed to have gained his composure, he said, "Merlin, Hermione. That's the spell Dumbledore told me he used teh kill the evil creatures! That's the spell! How'dja know it Hermione? How?"

"I really don't know, Hagrid. I really don't know. It was just a part of my dream. I didn't even think about it while I was dreaming. I was so upset by… the student's death that it just spilled out. Then the Nexaddo died. Oh, Merlin, Hagrid. I don't know what's wrong with me."

Hermione felt so helpless. She sighed and looked at her hands until she felt Hagrids massive hands consume her shoulders. He engulfed her in a huge hug and patted her on the back until she pulled away.

"Thank you so much, Hagrid, for all you've told me. I don't know what I'm going to do with the information yet, but I'll let you know when I figure it out. I just wish someone could tell me what's going on with my head." She shook her head and thanked Hagrid again. They said their goodbyes and she headed back toward the castle.

.ooOoo.

The nervousness about her impending meeting with Malfoy increased with every moment that passed and it was only 6:00. She still had another four hours to wait until their meeting and all she could think about was that monster and the fact that she now had to tell Malfoy that it wasn't just a dream, that it was something more, and for whatever reason the fates decided to throw them into it together.

Needless to say, the pent up nerves in her system had Hermione in a right foul mood. To escape it, she took a shower (even though she'd already taken one that morning), finished her Arithmancy project (which wasn't due for another month), organized her wardrobe, AND organized Ginny's wardrobe. She then proceeded to go downstairs and interrogate Ron and Harry about THEIR homework assignments.

Both Ron and Harry knew full well to avoid confrontation at any cost when Hurricane Hermione stormed into port, but this time she snuck up on them. They had been sitting at a table in the common room with Seamus, Dean, Lavender (though she was simply examining her nails, rather than participating in the conversation) and Ginny, debating quidditch strategies, when she attacked.

"Ronald Weasley! Harry Potter! Why aren't you working on your Potions project?! You should be studying, not messing around like you always do!" Hermione shrieked.

Both boys flinched at hearing Hermione's 'I'm-freaking-out-about-something-and-don't-know- what-to-do-about-it-so-I'll-just-yell-at-you-two' voice from behind them. They gave each other a look that said 'Run for it,' but they knew it was too late.

"Ummm… well, you know that that isn't due for another two weeks, Hermione," Ron's voice squeaked.

"TWO WEEKS?! Two weeks, Ronald? And you're just dilly-dallying around not working on it? You both KNOW how horrible you are at Potions! You should be using every second of those two weeks to study!" She shrieked. Her hair was flying about her head and her eyes held a deranged glint.

Ron swallowed hard. _Oh here we go…_ he thought to himself. _She's officially off her rocker._

"Umm.. you're right, Hermione. We'll just go upstairs and do that now. Thank you so much for reminding us," Harry said a little less fearfully than Ron had. Harry grabbed his friend by the arm and hauled him up the stairs without another word.

Lavender just got up, rolled her eyes, and walked away while Ginny, Seamus, and Dean passed looks to each other. Hermione noticed.

"Oh don't you three give me that look! I'm sure you all have more important things to be doing too," she looked pointedly at them all.

Seamus and Dean got up and headed to their room together, muttering to each other all the way there.

"Hermione, come upstairs with me for a minute. We need to talk," Ginny said to her friend and tugged on her arm. She was the one out of the six that didn't fear Hermione's little outbursts, probably because she knew how to handle her mood swings the best. Hermione visibly deflated and followed her upstairs.

When they reached their room, Ginny sat on her bed and patted the seat next to her. Hermione sat down.

"So you want to tell me what that was about? And don't go telling me it was out of fear for Ron and Harry's grades. I know you better than that. And don't try blowing it off, either." She gave her a pointed look that was very similar to the one Molly Weasley wore when she was interrogating the twins about something.

Hermione blushed and sat quietly for a couple seconds, which made Ginny wonder if she was even going to respond at all.

"I've just got a lot on my plate right now, Gin. What with all of the things going on and the impending war, and all of the stuff with the Horcruxes, I just had a little bit of a mental breakdown." Hermione stared at the floor as she said it.

"Well, since I think that's_part_ of the truth, I'll let you get away with it for now. But I know there's something else bothering you, Hermione. If those were the only reasons, you would've had this breakdown a while ago. I mean those aren't new worries for any of us." Ginny thought for a moment about whether she wanted to continue. She decided she did. "So do any of your other reasons have anything to do with our favorite blonde Slytherin and a certain note you received at lunch?"

Hermione's eyes snapped up to meet Ginny's and she was about to deny everything, but something in Ginny's eyes told her she could tell her the truth.

"You have to swear you won't tell Harry or Ron or ANYONE about this. Swear it, Ginevra, or I swear I'll never speak to you again," Hermione said vehemently.

"I swear," Ginny replied without hesitation.

"Okay. Well… this is going to sound crazy, but you know those nightmares I've been having?" Ginny nodded. "Well I'm not so sure they're just nightmares. Now I'm thinking that they're more like what happens to Harry sometimes."

Ginny gasped. "Voldemort's in your head too?" she asked worriedly.

"No. No. I don't think that's it. I think it's more like I'm seeing the future or something. And it's always bad. I don't think it's Voldemort though, because his connection to Harry is through Harry's scar. He's never touched me so there's no way he could be in my head. And even if he COULD, why would he show me what he plans to do? It doesn't make any sense."

Ginny nodded and looked thoughtful for a while. "So what does any of that have to do with Malfoy?" Hermione didn't look at her. "Come on, Hermione. You can tell me. I mean, you've already sworn me to secrecy, remember?" she joked.

Hermione looked up but still looked hesitant. "He's been in my dreams," she said simply.

"Oooookaayyy…" Ginny said and gave her a confused look.

"He's actually been IN my dreams, Gin. Like we've been SHARING dreams," Hermione stressed, trying to explain.

Ginny looked at her in shock. "How…?" she asked.

Hermione's forehead creased. "That's what I've been trying to figure out. Just none of it makes any sense. Like you remember when I woke up the whole House a couple nights ago, screaming? I'd had a nightmare about a horrible scorpion creature that was chasing me through some hallways in the school. Malfoy grabbed me and dragged me down into this hole and told me to be quiet. He was PROTECTING me. Then after we'd decided it was safe to come out, we started walking through the hallway together and the thing popped out and it… it KILLED Malfoy." Hermione felt tears welling up again but none fell.

"I'm sorry to be so judgmental and everything, but why would the ferret's death cause you to wake up screaming?" Ginny asked.

"Because, Ginny. Malfoy wasn't the horrible prat that we've come to know. He sacrificed his life to save me and he died in my arms."

Ginny looked surprised. "Well that's surprising. I didn't think he'd sacrifice himself for anyone. He's always been such a selfish arse."

"I know. But when I woke up and went down to the library, he was sitting there already and he was reading a book about dark, magical creatures. It startled me so much, because that was what I had rushed down to the library for. A book on dark, magical creatures. I needed to know if that creature in my dream was real. But anyways, I ended up running out of the library and he followed me. Turns out he'd had the EXACT same dream as me, Ginny. Same creature and everything."

"Wow…." Ginny said after a minute. She looked lost in thought. "So did you ever figure out what that creature WAS in your dream?"

Hermione looked up at her fearfully. "Yea. Malfoy and I couldn't find anything about it in any of the books we looked at, but I wasn't satisfied. The dream was just too real to be a figment of my… or rather, mine and Malfoy's… imaginations. So after lunch I went to Hagrid on the off-chance that he might know something about it. The creature exists, Gin. It supposedly went extinct when Grindelwald was defeated, but I don't think so. Ginny, Hagrid was afraid just talking about it."

Ginny realized what that meant, that it wasn't good. She looked like she didn't know what to say.

"But anyways, that note from Malfoy was telling me to meet him at 10 o'clock tonight in the library to talk about our situation. I'm so scared, Gin. I don't know what to tell him. And I don't know what this means. I'm so confused." Hermione looked at Ginny and Ginny could tell she was lost. She wished she could help her friend but she didn't know what she could do.

"You know you should tell Harry and Ron about this, right? They might be able to help," Ginny suggested.

"Yea right! You know how protective your brother gets! He would be watching me nonstop and I don't want that. Plus I don't want to worry them. Harry doesn't need ANOTHER thing to worry about, Gin. Especially not something that hasn't happened, and may very well NEVER happen. And you know full well that Ron would flip out if I told him I was going to be spending time with Draco Malfoy on a regular basis. Whether we like it or not, he's a part of this too."

Ginny opened her mouth, then closed it again. She knew what Hermione meant and she loved Harry too much to put something ELSE on his plate. "Well if these dreams continue, Hermione, I expect you to tell someone about them. Maybe one of the professors? One of them could maybe shed some light on it. Don't go through it alone. You've seen what that turned Harry into." Ginny got a faraway look in her eyes. "And I wanted to thank you, Hermione. For whatever you said to Harry that snapped him out of it. Thanks for bringing him back. I couldn't stand to see him like that any longer." She threw her arms around her friend.

"Well, Gin. Since he seems like he's turning into the old Harry, maybe he'll come to his senses and realize that you two are meant to be together."

Ginny smiled widely. "Oh, gosh, Hermione. I hope so." Her face turned serious again. "But I meant it when I said that if you start having more of these dreams, you need to tell someone. Don't make me break my promise."

"I won't, Gin. Thank you. I already feel a little better now that I'm not going through it alone."

With that, the two girls hugged again and Ginny headed back downstairs. Hermione laid down on her bed with a sigh and set an alarm for 9:30. She figured if she had to wait another two hours, she might as well do it sleeping. She slowly drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5:**

When Hermione awoke, it was pitch black outside of the castle. She groaned, rolled over, picked up her wand, and muttered the spell that would turn off her alarm. She groaned again and turned back over, burying her face in her pillow.

When she finally remembered why the alarm had awoken her in the first place, she shot out of bed like an acromantula had bitten her. Her pulse was picking up speed with every second that ticked by and her breathing was becoming labored.

"Oh Merlin. Malfoy," she whispered. "How could I have forgotten?"

She smacked herself in the forehead and checked the time.

"_Tempus temporis_," she muttered to her wand.

"9:30 PM," an airy voice replied from the tip of the wand.

"Ugh," Hermione responded. Her pulse was slowing down again, though, thankfully.

Hermione walked over to her wardrobe and pulled out a soft, midnight black jumper and dark-wash jeans and tugged them on. She then slipped her black ballerina flats on her feet and headed out of the portrait hole, her heart pounding loudly in her ears.

.ooOoo.

As Hermione approached the doors that lead into the library, she felt as if her heart was trying to leap into her throat. Her mouth felt as dry as a desert on a hot, sunny day and it was getting increasingly difficult to swallow.

_Oh this is ridiculous…_ Hermione thought to herself and shook her head roughly to clear it. _It's just MALFOY for Merlin's sake._

She stood outside of the door for a second more, took a deep breath to solidify her resolve, then shoved the door open and strode in. She ducked through a few rows of shelves and looked over to the corner where she had seen Malfoy sitting that first night.

Sure enough, the blonde was sitting in the exact same spot, head tilted down, reading through another book on dark magical creatures. His brow was furrowed in concentration and a stray strand of platinum hair was hanging in front of his face. Hermione almost smiled. He almost looked like he WASN'T a wannabe Death Eater. That thought wiped the smile right off of her face and she headed over to the table to talk to him.

Malfoy looked up when he heard her footsteps padding toward him and his eyes got a fraction wider, then narrowed again.

"You look different," he drawled as he eyed a few of the new additions to her wardrobe.

She didn't know what he meant by that so she just muttered an awkward, "Thank you..?" and sat down next to him. She didn't know how to introduce the subject she knew they had to talk about, but luckily Malfoy decided to save her the trouble.

"So have you found out anything about the monster, Granger, or have you been too busy babysitting Potter and the Weasel?" Malfoy asked snidely.

Hermione felt her temper rising. I mean, really, they had only been near each other for a minute and he was already throwing insults at her.

"For your information, Harry and Ron DON'T need me to babysit them. And yes. I HAVE found something out about the monster," she huffed.

He smirked at her tempered words. "So what have you found out?" he continued as if she hadn't said anything.

Hermione felt her anger fade away as she started thinking about the Nexaddo.

"It's called a Nexaddo, and from what I've heard, they were supposed to have been killed off when Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald. They'd fought on Grindelwald's side during the battle, and the Ministry supposedly erased all mention of the nasty creatures after the war was over," she whispered.

Malfoy just looked at her for a while. Then he asked, "So how does that explain one being in our dream?"

"That's the one thing I couldn't figure out." She frowned. "This just doesn't make sense, Malfoy. How could we have POSSIBLY known enough about the Nexaddos to have had a dream about one? I hadn't even heard of anything like them until we had that dream. Had you ever heard of anything resembling them?" She was almost used to saying 'our dream' now.

He just looked at her dully. "Oh yes, Granger. And I've been mulling around in the library, researching my arse off because I felt like playing with you. I just LOVE wasting my time on things I already know."

"Okay, okay. You don't have to be such a prat. I was just making sure we were on the same page."

He muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like, "We'll never be on the same page," but she let it go. They had more important things to worry about than Malfoy's nasty temperament at the moment.

She hesitated before she asked the question they both knew they had to answer, yet neither knew the answer to.

"So what do we do now, Malfoy?" she whispered.

He looked into her eyes. "I really don't know," he answered honestly. He really DIDN'T know and it was very frustrating for the Slytherin. Maddening, really. He was used to knowing just about everything that had any sort of effect on his life. "But I doubt this is the end of it. We had to have shared that dream for a reason."

She nodded and let out a huff of breath. "Well I don't think we should just sit here. We already know there's not going to be any mention of them in any of these books."

"And what do you propose we do, Granger? Sit back and wait and see if that thing really exists and tries to attack us?" Draco asked sarcastically.

She thought about it for a little while and an idea popped into her head. She snapped her eyes up to look at him and he eyed her back warily.

"No. We should go look for that hallway. If that thing really does try to attack, we need to be ready for it and know where it's going to happen."

He hesitated for a second, then nodded. He rose, put his book back where he found it, and headed to the door without a word. She followed.

.ooOoo.

With every minute that ticked by, Hermione and Malfoy were getting increasingly irritated with each other. They'd searched just about every hallway they could find and they still hadn't found the hallway from their dream. It was nearing midnight.

"Merlin, Granger. There's OBVIOUSLY no hallway even resembling that one so why are you still dragging me along on your pointless search?" His eyes narrowed at her and he slowed to a stop. "Oh, I see. This was all a plot of yours to get me alone."

She wasn't sure if he was joking or not so she just cocked an eyebrow at him. "I hope you're joking Malfoy, because trust me, if I had a choice, I would rather spend time with a boggart than with you."

He smirked at her. "Well I guess I was wrong for once. It looks like we actually DO agree about something." With that, he continued walking.

Hermione nearly had to jog to keep up with his long-legged stride. She didn't know what to say to him. It really did seem like they were on a wild goose chase and she was starting to feel hopeless. Then an idea popped into her head and she grabbed Malfoy's arm to stop him.

Malfoy jerked to a halt and just stared incredulously at Hermione's hand on his arm like she was burning him. Hermione pulled her hand away at once.

She said in a huff, "For Merlin's sake Malfoy, it's not like being a MUDBLOOD," she spat the word out like it was something rotten, "is contagious. You don't have to look like I just signed your death sentence."

Although Hermione tried to mask it, Malfoy could hear the hurt lying underneath the anger in her words. _Interesting_, he thought to himself.

"Anyways, the reason I stopped you was because I know how we can find this hallway." She looked at him, expecting a response.

"Well, Granger. Enlighten me. How exactly do you suppose we find this hallway when we've been looking all bloody night and it is obviously not here?" he replied, rolling his silver eyes.

"Just trust me for once, Malfoy. If it's in the castle I can find it. You just have to stay here. I can't have the other Gryffindors seeing you with me." With that she spun on her heel and ran off. If Hermione had turned around, she would have laughed at the affronted look on Malfoy's face.

.ooOoo.

Hermione entered the portrait hole looking very winded. She was grateful for it being the weekend because, although it was after midnight, Harry and Ron were sitting by the fire playing wizard's chess and talking. Lavender was cuddled up in Ron's lap while Ginny was sitting on the arm of Harry's chair, their bodies only centimetres apart. Hermione smiled. She would have to remember to question Ginny about that later.

"Harry, can I talk to you for a sec?" Hermione asked.

Harry's emerald gaze met hers. "Sure, 'Mione, I'll be right there." He turned to Ginny and whispered something in her ear, then got up. Ginny sat down in Harry's seat and continued the game for him. She had a bright smile on her flushed face as she gazed lovingly at Harry's back during Ron's turn.

Hermione led Harry to the opposite side of the common room from Ginny and Ron. She didn't want either of them hearing her questions.

"What's wrong, 'Mione? What do you need?" Harry asked worriedly.

"Oh, nothing's wrong, Harry. I just need a favor," she replied.

Without hesitation, he answered, "Anything."

She looked into his eyes. "I need to borrow your invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map and I need you to not ask me why. Can you do that for me, Harry? I promise I'll return them in the same condition you gave them to me," she pleaded.

He looked at her, shocked. "Okaaayyyy… I guess. You know I wouldn't worry about my things being under your care. And I won't ask any questions now, but I expect a full explanation when you feel like you can trust me." With that last sentence, he looked a little like she'd hurt his feelings.

Harry led Hermione up to his dorm room and knelt down in front of his chest. He pulled out the folded up invisibility cloak and Marauder's Map and handed them to her without a word. Hermione threw her arms around him.

"Thank you so much, Harry. And I wanted to let you know that it's NOT because I don't trust you. I WILL explain myself in time. I just need some time to do that. Thanks for being such a good friend." She smiled at him.

"Aw, 'Mione. You know I'll give you anything I can," he replied, blushing from her words.

She stepped away and headed back downstairs after tucking the cloak and map under her jumper. She smiled quickly at Ginny and Ron, then headed back out of the portrait hole.

When Harry got back to the game, Ginny and Ron looked at him expectantly. When he didn't give an explanation, Ron asked, "So what in Merlin's name was that about? And where does she think she's going at this hour?"

"I don't really know," Harry replied thoughtfully then continued the game.

.ooOoo.

When Hermione got back to the 5th floor corridor she'd left Malfoy in, she almost laughed to see him pacing back and forth. When he heard her coming he snarled, "What the hell took you so long, Granger?"

"I had to get some things from Gryffindor Tower." Going on instinct, she pulled out the invisibility cloak and threw it over Malfoy.

"What the..?" was his muffled reply. "Lord, Granger, you have an invisibility cloak?" he asked in awe.

"Ummm… yea," Hermione replied. She figured he didn't need to know it was really Harry's.

"Where did you get it?" he asked in amazement as he pulled the cloak off gingerly. He held the liquidy material in his hands as if it was a piece of porcelain that he was afraid of breaking.

"That's none of your concern. All you need to know is that I have one," she answered harshly, which snapped him out of his reverie. His eyes hardened again and she almost regretted it.

"You're right. It doesn't matter. So why did you bring it here?" he asked her snidely.

"So we can continue searching together without actually being SEEN together. It'll make it easy to hide, too, if we have to."

He nodded. "So is this all you've brought? It'll help, yes, but it won't show us where that hallway is."

"Actually, no. But this next one you have to swear to keep secret," Hermione whispered urgently.

Draco smirked. "And what makes you think you can trust any promise made by me? I'm a Slytherin, remember? I could just as well tell you I'll keep it a secret, then turn around and tell the whole school."

She didn't want to play his games. "Oh, you'll keep this secret, or else I'LL tell the whole school that we're working together. I'll tell everyone that Draco Malfoy, Slytherin Prince, came crawling to ME, Hermione Granger, because of a little nightmare that he couldn't handle on his own."

He looked shocked for a second, then looked at her with what could almost pass for respect. He replied with a smirk, "How very Slytherin of you, Granger. I never would've thought you had it in yourself to blackmail someone."

She just looked at him. "Swear it, Malfoy. Swear that you won't tell ANYONE about what I show you."

He hesitated, but Hermione got the feeling it was theatrics to make her nervous, not because he wasn't sure.

"Alright, Granger. I swear that I'll keep whatever you show me a secret. I won't breathe a word to anyone." Malfoy lifted his hand and languidly crossed his heart. He smirked again.

It was Hermione's turn to hesitate. She thought it all over and decided that he was telling the truth. With that, she pulled out the map, tapped it with her wand, and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Malfoy cocked a brow at that. Hermione then opened the tattered map to reveal a detailed drawing of the whole school and all of the people in it.

She looked at him and saw a look of astonishment on his aristocratic face as he watched a few of the little dots roaming around their common rooms, but most were stationary, like they were asleep.

"My God, Granger, what is this thing?" he whispered as he grabbed the map and noticed his and Hermione's names.

"Well, obviously, Malfoy, it's a map that's been spelled to show where everyone is at all times in the castle," she replied tauntingly.

He looked up to see a very Slytherin smirk on her lips and decided to file that away for future reference. He found it amusing that the perfect Gryffindor princess showed her true colors around him. Turning his attention back to the map, he wanted desperately to know where she had gotten such a precious gift, but he knew she wouldn't tell him if he asked, so he didn't waste his breath. He just handed it back to her.

"You see, Malfoy, I'm going to use this to find that hidden corridor, because not only does this show where everyone is, it also shows all of the hidden passageways in the school," she explained as she eyed the map. Her gaze fell on a promising area of the map. "Here, put on the cloak and follow me."

Hermione didn't wait for him to answer her, just strode off in the direction of the hallway on the map. When she gazed over her shoulder, Malfoy was nowhere in sight, so she figured he had listened to her.

.ooOoo.

When they reached the area on the 7th floor that had caught Hermione's eye on the map, Hermione slowed down.

"You can take the cloak off now, Malfoy. No one's up here." She heard the smooth material sliding over him and then he was by her side, handing her the cloak. She folded it back up and held it.

They continued walking along through the maze of hallways for a little while, which made Hermione thankful for the map. But when they turned another corner, Hermione gasped and stopped dead in her tracks.

"This is it. This is the hallway from our dream." She looked at Malfoy and he looked just as stunned. Then his eyes hardened and he met her gaze.

"Yes," he answered huskily. It was obvious seeing it for the first time in real life upset him. She understood why, though, because it's not every day a person sees the hallway they're supposed to die in. Hermione noticed Draco pulling out his wand. She followed his lead. Who knew what they would find up here?

They explored the maze for a while, but didn't find anything incriminating. No big, evil, scorpion creatures lived up there for the time being. Then they wandered over to the statue that stood over the grate from their dream. Malfoy leaned down, hooked a long, pale finger in it, and pulled it up. He then proceeded to jump down into the dark hole.

"What are you doing, Malfoy?" Hermione asked worriedly since she couldn't see him at all down in the hole.

"Just looking, Granger. You should come down here too," he answered.

She thought about it for a second, but decided to listen to him. She stood at the edge of the hole, not wanting to jump into the hole and land on Malfoy, but he took the worry away from her by reaching his arms up for her. The gesture surprised her, especially because of the look he'd given her earlier on in their journey when she'd grabbed his arm. She grudgingly took his hands in hers and jumped down, with his help.

The second her feet hit the floor, he let go of her.

"Yup, same hole," Hermione said, looking around at the four-by-four-by seven box they were in. Then she noticed that Malfoy was holding a white envelope in his hands and he looked really surprised. He held it out to her. "Lumos," she whispered. Her wand tip lit up and she could suddenly read who the envelope was addressed to. _Mister Malfoy and Miss Granger _was written on the front in Dumbledore's elegant script. All of the blood drained out of her face.

"Help me up," Hermione told Malfoy urgently. He did as she asked, then exited the hole right after her.

They stood side by side as she opened it. She unfolded the papers and read aloud:

_Dear Miss Granger and Mr. Malfoy,_

_I am very sorry to not be there with you to explain this situation to you in person. I know that you must feel very confused and alone. First, I'm going to tell you how proud I am that the two of you were able to generally overcome your differences and accept the reality that you are connected in this. I know all of this because I am the one that cast the spell that connected your two minds. You see, I knew that Voldemort would eventually find a way to let his monsters into Hogwarts, and that the war was coming very soon. I also knew that I was going to die before it all happened, so I wouldn't be there to assist you all in destroying them. You see, my dear students, I was very sick. I knew all along that I wasn't going to make it much longer, which led me to ask Professor Severus Snape to take my life so you, Mr. Malfoy, wouldn't have to. I knew that Voldemort's mission for you was for me to die by your hand. But I also knew that it was not your destiny to take my life. I've always known, Draco, that your destiny was far greater than that. That your destiny was to fight on the side of Light in the final war with Voldemort. You have never been evil, my boy, and it saddened me greatly to see Voldemort and Lucius using you that way._

With that last statement, Hermione looked up at Malfoy, but he refused to meet her gaze. She looked back down at the letter and continued reading:

_And for you, my dear Hermione, I've always known that you were going to be by Harry's side during the final battle, fighting Voldemort's evil with your incredible mind. You are an asset that Harry cannot afford to lose. You both are, which is why I decided to take matters into my own hands. I connected your two minds because, together, you will be unstoppable. Harry needs you both by his side on the day of the final battle, because, without either one of you, Voldemort will win. This is the reason that I showed you the dream that had been haunting me for weeks before my death. You needed to know the spell beforehand so you could kill the Nexaddo before it got to Draco, Hermione. You are both too important to lose. I hope that all of this information will not be for naught and that you two will get over your petty animosities once and for all and face the reality that you need each other. You have always needed each other, which is why you've always felt compelled to fight. And you always WILL need each other. Plus, the side of Light needs you both. I hope that now you will explore the extent of your minds' connection and use it against Voldemort. You both have more power than you know. _

_Best of luck in both of your lives,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

When Hermione finished, they were both too stunned to speak. Dumbledore had put a spell on them that had caused their mind connection? And what did he mean that she and Malfoy have always needed each other? All of this was too overwhelming for her and she didn't know what to do. So she did what her instincts told her to do. She pivoted and tore off down the hallway as fast as she could, leaving the invisibility cloak and the map on the floor by the grate.

She didn't hear Malfoy running after her until he grabbed her arm and swung her around. In the same fluid motion, she threw her arms around him and buried her face in his warm, hard chest.

Draco was stunned. He didn't know what he had expected when he had run after Granger, but this definitely wasn't it. He hadn't expected the girl to cling to him like she would be sucked into the floor without him. He didn't know what to do about it so he stood rigid as a toy soldier, with his arms at his sides for a long time.

Then he just thought, _Fuck it…_, and wrapped his arms tightly around her too. He placed a hand on the back of her neck and held her to him just as tightly as she was holding him. He held her like that until her sobs had gone and she was sniffling against his chest. She remembered absently thinking that he was surprisingly warm for someone who seemed like he was carved out of ice. But that thought left as quickly as it came, and Hermione's mind was back on how confused and upset she was.

For some reason Draco couldn't explain, he didn't want to let go of her, so he felt a relief when she didn't pull away right away. He would blame both of their reactions on trauma from seeing that letter when he thought about it later, but for now, he just wanted to comfort her. That desire was so unlike him that he didn't want to think about it.

They stood like that for what could've been hours for all they knew, but neither wanted to let go for fear of looking into the other's eyes. After a while longer, Hermione finally loosened her grip. Draco let go and turned away from her to keep her from seeing him completely unguarded. He'd felt all of his walls drop when she'd been in his arms and he didn't want her to know that.

Hermione didn't know what to think about what had just happened. She'd just held DRACO MALFOY. Or rather, he had held her, while she had sobbed like a baby into his chest. She stared at his back in fear. No wonder he didn't want to look at her. He probably felt dirty and contaminated. She was really surprised he had even let her touch him. But then she remembered his reaction to it. He had held her just as tightly to him.

Her mind was spinning and she didn't know what to do. So she followed her instincts again and placed a hand gently on his shoulder. She felt his body go as tight as a bowstring, but didn't remove her hand. She gently turned him and met his silver gaze with her brown one. She was startled by what she saw. There was no hard wall of ice blocking his feelings from view. He wasn't the ice prince that he had proven himself to be so many times before. What she saw in his pale eyes was a fire built of raw emotion so intense it almost burned her.

She gasped, and without thinking, lifted her hand from his shoulder to his cheek. He put his hand over hers and for a second she thought he was going to push hers away, and he looked like he thought that too. But then he closed his eyes tight and sighed.

"What are we doing, Granger?" he asked on an exhale, not opening his eyes.

"I don't know," Hermione whispered barely loud enough for herself to hear. She shook her head and pulled her hand away. He let her.

"I think we should go. I know we need to talk about this, and soon, but I don't think either of us could handle it right now," she said after gaining an ounce of composure. She shuddered out a breath.

Draco's eyes opened, fire dulling a bit but not completely, and he nodded. He moved back toward the place where Hermione had read the letter, and he picked up the Marauder's Map and the invisibility cloak. He walked back and handed them to her, and they both headed back out of the maze, Hermione leading the way.

When they got to the end, they turned to look at each other one more time. "Goodnight," whispered Hermione. "Goodnight," Draco replied. Then they went their separate ways, Draco to the dungeons, and Hermione to the Gryffindor Tower. They both realized at the same time that things would never be the same for them after this.

**Wow, that was an emotional rollercoaster, wasn't it? Haha. And it only gets better from there. Well, I want to thank all of my readers for sticking with this story for all five of these chapters. In the next chapter, you'll get a glipse into what happened to Draco and Snape the night Dumbledore died. That's when the story starts to deserve its Mature rating. So I hope you're loving it as much as I love writing it. Please review. I would love to hear what you have to think. Thank you!**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6:**

During Draco's long walk down seven stories to the dungeon, all he could think about was Granger. He couldn't get his mind off of her small, soft hand on his cheek. He shook his head to clear it.

"This is ridiculous. She's a mudblood. And she TOUCHED you. How dare she even come close to you?" he tried to sway himself, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't feel the same hatred toward her as he used to. "Get over yourself, Draco. All of these feelings are just a reaction to the stress brought on by that stupid letter from Dumbledore."

No matter how badly Draco didn't want to think about Hermione, he didn't want to think about that letter even more. All it did was send his mind spinning. How could Dumbledore have known so much? How could he have possibly known that Granger and him would've gone looking for that hallway, or that they would've jumped into that hole and seen his letter. I mean, the man had always been a little spooky with how much he seemed to know, but this was taking the cake.

Too bad he wasn't right about one thing. I really AM evil. Draco thought and gave a humorless laugh at where his thoughts were going. Draco thought about the atrocities that Voldemort had made him commit and that had been committed against him after the incident in the tower and his mind took him back to that night…

_Draco was running as hard as he could with Professor Snape, both men trying to get through the gates of Hogwarts so that they could Apparate to safety._

"_Stupefy!" he thought he heard Potter's voice yell from somewhere behind him, but his heart was pounding so hard and his thoughts were racing so fast at what had just happened, he wasn't sure if it was just his mind playing tricks on him._

_When Draco heard Snape shout, "Run, Draco!" he knew it was not a hallucination. He followed Snape's orders and kept on running, through the gates and away from Potter. The second he stepped out of the gates, he pivoted and viewed the scene that was unfolding in front of him. He watched everything that was happening like it was in slow-motion, and all of the sound had disappeared._

_Two of the things he saw startled him most. First, he saw that the half-giant, Hagrid's, house was on fire. And second, he saw Snape facing off with Potter, the two men standing about twenty yards apart, throwing hexes at one another. He couldn't hear what was being said, but he saw the jets of light flying back and forth._

_Next thing Draco knew, Potter was on the ground, writhing and screaming in excruciating pain from a Cruciatus Curse thrown by one of the other Death Eaters. He didn't know which one had done it, but he saw Snape shout, and Potter stopped writhing. _

_It vaguely registered in Draco's terrified mind that Potter was on his feet again. Potter wobbled and steadied himself for a fleeting second, but then he rushed at Snape, wand drawn, and face contorted in rage and pain. In all of Draco's years with Potter at Hogwarts, he had NEVER seen a look like that on Potter's face, and for some reason, he was upset that it was there._

_After a few more curses were thrown, Snape had finally had enough, and hit Harry hard with a spell that sent him flying and his wand leaping out of his hand. Snape went and stood over him, screaming in outrage at the boy on the ground, who then lunged for his wand. Snape hit the wand with a spell that sent it flying somewhere into the darkness. _

_Draco watched as Harry glared up at the man in front of him from his spot on the ground without an ounce of fear on his face. Draco remembered vaguely thinking then that Potter seemed to be living up to his Gryffindor courage. Then Snape hit Harry with a spell that whipped into his face and took Draco's mind off its delirious wandering. Potter was slammed into the ground from the spell and looked dazed._

_Suddenly that huge hippogriff, Buckbeak, tore out of the forest and reared up onto its hind legs, clawing at Snape like it had done to Draco during his third year, and Snape staggered back, blocking his face with his arm. Snape then turned and ran at Draco, yelling at him to move back. He did as he was ordered._

_Snape grabbed Draco's arm as soon as he was out of the gates, said the apparition spell, and it suddenly felt as if Draco was being sucked through a huge vacuum, or that's what he would have thought if he had known what a vacuum was. Then his world went black._

Draco shook his head, hard, to clear the thoughts of the night that still haunted him. Too bad that the battle at Hogwarts hadn't been the worst part of the night. Not by a long shot. His eyes glazed over again as the new memory surfaced…

_Draco couldn't see anything, but he felt Snape's hand still attached in a death grip to his arm. Without warning, the squeezing feeling stopped, and Draco hit the ground hard. He landed sprawled on the floor of the foyer of Malfoy Manor. When he raised his upper body off the floor, his eyes went wide in horror._

_The first thing he saw when he raised his eyes was the body of a muggle girl lying on the floor next to him, her eyes staring, forever empty, into his. He tried to crawl away from her as fast as he could. Then he noticed something far worse than that muggle girl. He looked up once again, into the slitted, snake-like eyes of Lord Voldemort._

_Voldemort stood in the center of the foyer, Lucius by his side. His father looked really disappointed and Draco remembered vaguely thinking that that wasn't a good sign._

"_Well, well, well, what have we got here?" Voldemort hissed out of that horrible hole where his lips should have been. "I am not pleased with you, Draco, not pleased at all. You have failed this simple mission I have given you. Now you will pay dearly." Draco squeezed his eyes shut as he saw Voldemort lifting his wand toward him. "Avada…"_

"_Wait, my lord! I can explain!" yelled Snape's voice from Draco's left. _

"_You will not speak unless spoken too!" screamed Voldemort with a psychotic gleam in his eye. "Crucio!"_

_With that, Snape fell, writhing on the ground with his mouth open in a silent scream. The look on Voldemort's face was one of pure pleasure. He kept the curse on Snape for what seemed like hours to Draco. Finally, Voldemort seemed to tire of his little game and removed the spell. He walked over to where Snape was lying, panting face-down on the ground and rolled him back over with his bare foot. _

"_Now, Severus. You may speak. Tell me why I should not take this worthless boy's life." Snape got shakily to his feet again and looked like he was about to collapse. Luckily for him, he didn't._

"_Because, my lord. Draco couldn't complete the task because Dumbledore was charming him. You know, my lord, how he used to do this. He could stop anyone in his tracks with a word," Snape tried to convince Voldemort._

_Voldemort seemed to be thinking about it for a moment, then nodded. "Yes. I remember very well how that old fool used to talk me out of things. But that is no excuse. Draco should have been stronger. He should've ended the old man's life before he even got the chance to charm him." He trained his snake-like gaze back on Draco but didn't lift his wand._

"_Yes, my lord. Draco should have been stronger, but he is only just a boy. He is not half as strong as you would have been had you been in his place. Plus, he has never killed, my lord. He hasn't had the experience needed to go up against such a powerful wizard as Dumbledore. So when I entered the tower and saw what Dumbledore was doing, I killed him myself." Snape bowed his head. "I am sorry, my lord, for I know that that wasn't your orders, but the last thing I wanted was for Dumbledore to escape alive. I acted the only way I knew would ensure us our victory. And now Dumbledore is dead. We have won once and for all." With that Snape raised his head and looked back at his master with a look of determination on his gaunt face._

_Voldemort seemed to be thinking it over. After a couple of seconds , he smiled his grotesque smile, his sharpened, yellow teeth shining in the dull candlelight. "Yes, Severus. I understand why you did what you did. But the next time you go against my orders will be the last, do you understand me?"_

_Snape nodded vigorously. "Yes, master. Thank you for your mercy." This time he bowed his whole body. Voldemort seemed satisfied with that and dismissed Snape with a wave of his hand. He then turned around and faced Draco. Draco didn't see the look of worry on Snape's face as he was leaving the room._

_Lucius still stood next to Voldemort, smirking but not speaking as Voldemort circled around Draco. Draco bowed his head._

"_So what should we do with you now, Draco? You have failed your task, which means you have failed me. Thanks to Severus's quick thinking in the tower, I am not going to kill you. But by the time I'm done with you, you're going to wish you were dead." He smiled his teeth-baring smile again and waved his wand at Draco._

_Draco fell to the floor as it felt like fire was eating at his flesh. He thought he heard someone screaming from someplace far away, but he wasn't sure. He didn't realize that the screams were coming from his own lips. He had absolutely no control of his limbs as the excruciating pain covered every inch of his skin. He just lay, thrashing brokenly on the floor, praying for the pain to be over._

_After what felt like an eternity, the spell was taken off of him, and he felt relief. He still lay on the floor, quivering and panting, but at least he was alive._

_The next thing he knew, Voldemort waved his wand at him again. Without a word being said, Draco felt tight ropes binding him around his chest and legs, tying his arms to his sides and his feet together. "Relieve him of his wand and take him to the dungeons and out of my sight," Voldemort hissed. Two black-hooded figures he didn't remember seeing before his torture came and grabbed Draco and dragged him down some hallways and down two flights of stairs into the dungeons. _

_The Death Eaters tossed Draco hard on the dungeon floor and unbound him. Then they turned and walked out. Draco looked around his prison from his place on the cold, stone floor. The room was about eight feet in length and width, but it was very tall, just like the rest of the Malfoy Manor. There was a stone bench jutting out from the wall on the left and Draco guessed that it also doubled as a bed. There was a small sink in the back, right corner, which was next to a hole in the ground. Draco guessed that the hole was there in case he needed to relieve himself and he started to feel nauseous. He looked away quickly. Those were the only things in his cell that he saw. _

_Draco's examination of the room was cut short when he heard metal clicking against metal and the iron door to his cell opened again to reveal a man with waist-length, white-blonde hair, and aristocratic features._

"_Father," Draco acknowledged Lucius coldly._

_Lucius scowled at him. "I am very disappointed in you Draco. I am ashamed to call you my son. Look at you, lying on the ground like a beaten puppy. Raise yourself up to your feet when you talk to me, you pathetic child," Lucius yelled at him._

_Draco slowly lifted himself to his feet. His legs felt like they had been jinxed with the Jelly-Legs Jinx, but he stood anyway. He raised his chin and looked into his father's eyes. They were nearly the same height now. Lucius didn't seem to like that fact. He whipped out his wand and knocked Draco back down with another Cruciatus._

_Draco fell, shaking violently on the floor, but there was no screaming this time. The pain was so intense, his lungs refused to release the breath necessary to scream. _

_When Lucius lifted the curse, he was smirking. "You're pathetic, Draco. You couldn't even complete a simple task for our lord. What use are you to any of us now? The Dark Lord will never trust you with another task again." Lucius shook his head and tsk-tsked sadly. "It looks like you're going to need to prove your worth, Draco." _

_With those last words, Lucius conjured his favorite tool of punishment out of the air. The cat-o-nine tails had very thin, braided leather strands that were each four feet long. Each strand ended in a tight knot around a small silver ball. _

_The balls glistened as they flew through the air and smacked the ground next to where Draco was laying. Lucius said a quick spell that vanished Draco's shirt. Then, after another spell, Draco found himself with his wrists tied together by a rope hanging from the ceiling. He was still touching the ground with his feet, but most of his weight was supported by his arms. That in itself made him feel like his arms were going to be ripped off, or at the very least dislocated. But Lucius was just getting started._

_Without warning, Draco felt the first hit slam into his smooth skin. He opened his mouth and let out a cry that should have been loud enough to wake up the whole six-story mansion. The braided leather burned into his skin where it hit him and the silver balls left large red welts. The next hit took his breath away and he felt like he would never breathe again. He could feel the tears pouring down his face as well as he could now feel the blood trickling down his back._

_The force of the next blow made Draco think that his back should have broken. His skin was starting to numb from the shock, but he could still feel the stinging where his sweat was leaking into the open wounds._

_Lucius carried on like this for a long while and by the time he was done Draco could no longer feel his back. Tears were gliding freely down his face and he could hear his own whimpering sobs, though he couldn't feel them. He felt detached from what was happening, detached from his body. He almost felt as though he was watching from somewhere else in the room. _

_Lucius said the spell that untied Draco's wrists from the ceiling and Draco landed in a heap on the ground. He felt the shredded skin on his back screaming in agony when he fell because it was being compressed back to normal after being in its stretched position for so long. Draco just lay sobbing and quivering with his face pressed against the stone floor, trying his hardest not to move for fear of disturbing his wounds._

_Then Lucius said without a hint of sympathy, "You should have obeyed the Dark Lord's orders, boy. If you had, you would be asleep in your warm bed tonight, and not here in this dungeon. But you will stay here as long as it takes for you to learn your lesson and prove your worth to our lord." With that, Draco heard Lucius's feet move across the stone and back out of his cell, the iron door slamming and locking behind him._

_The next thing Draco knew, he was awoken out of a dreamless sleep by a small sound at the door to his cell. When Draco listened hard he realized that someone was trying to enter it without being detected, whether it be by him or by his father, he didn't know. Draco couldn't move to look at the door, but even if he could have, he wouldn't have been able to see anything because of how dark it was._

_The door quietly opened and Draco heard a small whisper from above him. Whoever was in his cell with him whispered a quiet, "Lumos," and a faint yellow light was shined into his face. All he could do was close his eyes tightly at the assault. He heard a gasp and the person fell to their knees next to him and started sobbing._

_Draco craned his neck as much as he could without hurting himself so he could see who was with him. He looked up into a woman's beautiful face. A face that was framed with pale blonde hair. Draco barely registered that it was his mother. _

"_Oh, Draco…" Narcissa sobbed. "Why didn't you just do as the Dark Lord asked? Why did you have to sentence yourself to this?" She grabbed his hand and squeezed tight as she wept. _

"_Mother," Draco rasped. His throat was so dry from everything that had happened, but he had no water and there was no way for him to reach the sink to get some. Narcissa seemed to realize this and conjured a glass out of thin air. She was still sobbing, but she managed to move his hand enough for him to grip the glass. From his position lying mostly face down on the floor, he couldn't get any water._

"_Oh, Draco," Narcissa whispered again. She sounded like she was gaining a tiny bit of composure but Draco could see the tears still leaking down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, love, but I'm going to have to move you."_

_Draco tried to shake his head but it hurt too much. Narcissa ignored him anyway. As gently as she could she slid a hand under his right arm and used her other hand to lightly push on his backside to straighten him out and lay him completely on his side. Draco hissed as the pain attacked him. Narcissa stopped moving him so that the pain could subside again. Using the hand hooked under his arm, she gently started lifting his upper half. When he was far enough off the ground for her to slide her other hand under his hip, she did, which allowed her to keep him as straight as she could as she sat him up. _

_The pain flared back up again and was so intense it assaulted all of his senses. He couldn't breathe or think. After he was in the sitting position and his brain started functioning again, he realized that he was sobbing into his mother's neck and she was whispering gently in his ear. They stayed like that for ages, it seemed, until Draco's back was just aching slightly. Narcissa shifted away from him as gently as she could and placed a cool, pale, elegant hand on his cheek. He just sat there gazing into his mother's eyes, as helpless as a baby._

"_Draco, you have to listen to me. Please just do whatever your father and the Dark Lord say. Don't give him any more reason to punish you." She didn't look entirely convinced that that would stop Lucius from punishing his son, but she said it anyways. It killed her to see her baby so helpless. And it lit her blood on fire to know that it was her husband, the man she loved more than anything (except her son, that is) that caused his current predicament. "I'm not supposed to be here right now, Draco, but I'm here anyway. I'm going to try to heal your back now, so it might sting a little._

_Draco remembered laughing about that statement in his head. Sting? He could deal with a little stinging._

"_Ahh!" Draco yelled as his back felt like it was being lit on fire, all of his wounds opening up again, but he felt his mother's cool hand cover his mouth._

"_Oh, baby. I'm so sorry. Lucius must have charmed the whip to leave unhealable wounds." Narcissa surveyed the damage in front of her and it nearly broke her heart. The horrible wounds that scattered her son's pale, perfect back were now open again as if they were fresh, oozing blood and clear liquid down his back. It killed her to know that this time she had caused his pain. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she whispered._

_They sat together after that for what could've been minutes or hours. Draco didn't know and there was no way to see what the approximate time was by the sun, because they were underground. The pain subsided again but this time, his back wouldn't stop throbbing. After a long time, Narcissa let go of her son's hand and got up to leave. _

"_I'll be back to see you as soon as I can, but remember what I told you. Just don't upset them, Draco." With that, she helped him move from the floor to the stone 'bed' and he sat down on it. That whole process took a long time and by the time they were done Narcissa was starting to look worried. _

_She headed toward the door and whispered so quietly Draco almost didn't hear her. "I love you, my son."_

_He would have replied if he could but he couldn't form words. Narcissa seemed to be able to tell, though, just from the look he gave her. He put as much love as he could muster into that one look. She smiled at him and he remembered thinking that she looked like an angel. _

_Then she left, and Draco was left to his own thoughts. He fell asleep sitting up on the stone slab, and dreamt of pain and death and horrible, cackling laughter._

When Draco came out of the memory, he realized that he was leaning with his forehead against the wall. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes when he thought of the next part of what had happened to him after that first night…

_The torture Draco had endured that night was just the beginning. Every day for a week, Lucius came into his cell and whipped him bloody. Some days he would mix it up and add some fun little spells to his torture agenda. And every night, Narcissa would come in with some healing salve to put on his injuries because they couldn't be healed by spells. The salve wouldn't completely heal the wounds, but it took a lot of the burn away and gave him some comfort. It also comforted him greatly to have his mother there. _

_But every night, after she had rubbed the salve on his back, she would have to leave. It made Draco realize just how alone he really was. It also made him realize he had to do anything he could to get out of there, and if that meant just dealing with the pain, he would do it._

_One afternoon, probably the fourth or fifth day he was trapped in his cage, Draco guessed, the door to his cell opened and a girl about his age was thrown in. The cell door was immediately closed behind her and she threw herself at it, pounding and wailing. Draco just sat on his bench and warily waited for the girl to notice him. She didn't for a very long time. She pounded on the door until her hands were raw and bruised and her wailing evolved into shuddering sobs. She leaned her forehead on the door and sunk to the floor in a heap. She drew her knees up to her chest and started rocking back and forth, her face buried in her hands. _

"_Ahem…" Draco coughed. _

_The girl's head shot up and her eyes met his wildly. She crab-crawled back until her back was against the wall and she couldn't get any further from him. Draco didn't know what he was supposed to do about this._

_Draco got up slowly from his bench (silently thanking his mother for the salve that made his back not hurt so much) and, lifting his hands to let her know he wasn't going to hurt her, inched toward her._

"_I'm not going to hurt you. It's okay," Draco whispered so as not to frighten her. She wouldn't be able to give him any answers if she passed out from fear, which she was looking like she was going to do any moment._

_She just stared at him with her huge blue eyes. Draco inched closer. He needed to know why she was there. When he got within a couple of feet of her, he knelt down._

"_Who are you and why are you here?" he asked a little bit harshly. She flinched. Draco sighed heavily. "I'm sorry. I just wasn't expecting company and they threw you in here. So who are you?"_

"_Alexa," the pretty brunette whispered. "My name is Alexa, and I don't know why I'm here. One minute I was at a club with my friends, and the next I'm being dragged down a scary dark hallway by men in horrible masks and then I'm being thrown in here." She covered her face with her hands and started to cry again. Draco let her finish, which didn't take long this time._

"_A club?" he asked. He thought he remembered hearing about the muggle dance venues, but he wasn't entirely sure._

"_Yea. My friends and I were all going out for my seventeenth birthday to a club called The Phoenix, but I don't remember what happened after we parked the car. I just remember waking up and being thrown in here. Where am I?" the girl asked, her eyes searching the cell._

"_You're in Malfoy Manor, in Wiltshire," Draco informed her. _

"_Why was I brought here? Why am I in a cell?" she asked. "Why are YOU in a cell?"_

_Draco sighed again. He didn't know what to say to this muggle girl. Where should he even start? "I don't know why you're here. And I'M here because I upset my father." He let the subject drop and turned around to walk back to his bench._

_Alexa gasped loudly as she saw his back. "Oh my God, what happened to you?" She got up from her spot in the corner and walked toward him, her hand extended and her mouth open in a gape. She looked at him in horror when he whirled around._

"_None of your business, muggle," he snapped, then instantly regretted it. Alexa jumped back in fear, her eyes wide again, afraid he would attack her._

_Draco sighed another time and held his hands up again. "I'm sorry…" he trailed off._

_She seemed to realize he wasn't going to hurt her because she stepped toward him again. "What happened to you?" she whispered._

"_I already told you. I upset my father." _

"_Your FATHER did this to you?" she stared at him in shock._

"_Yes," he answered simply, then sat down._

_She just stared at him. After a couple more seconds she shook her head then sat down next to him. It took him a lot of effort not to move away from her. He really didn't like to be close to people, especially not MUGGLES._

"_So what was that word you called me earlier? A… a muggle…?" she asked._

"_Do you ever stop asking questions?" Draco asked in frustration. She just stared at him blankly, expecting an answer. "Ergh. It means 'non-magical person.'"_

"_Wait. Did you just say MAGIC? Like Houdini and pulling rabbits out of hats magic?" She started laughing until she noticed his cold stare._

"_No, not like HOUDINI. He was a muggle that just wished he was a wizard," Draco muttered._

"_Wizard?" she asked confusedly. "You can't honestly believe that wizards and magic really exist."_

"_Of course I do. I AM a wizard and I DO magic," he answered dully._

"_If you're really a wizard, then why don't you just say a spell and get us out of here?" she asked, looking at him like he was crazy._

"_I would if I had my wand. But my father took it from me before he threw me in this pit. Now I'm as helpless as you, muggle." He sighed again._

"_Okaayyy… so you really believe all of this stuff." She got up and started pacing. "Just great," she muttered to herself, "Now I'm stuck in this place with a crazy man. 'Wizards'…"_

_She jumped back when the door to the cell slammed open again. In walked Lucius._

"_Alright, Draco. The Dark Lord is giving you another chance to prove yourself." Lucius smirked at his son then turned to gaze at Alexa in disgust. "Petrificus Totalus!" he shouted and waved his wand at her. She immediately went as straight as a board and crashed to the floor. "Mobilicorpus!" He levitated her body out of the cell door and beckoned Draco to follow him. He did so warily._

_When Draco and Lucius, along with Alexa, made it back into the drawing room, Draco saw Lord Voldemort already standing there. The fire in the fireplace was lit and there were candles lit around the room. The windows showed that the sun was just setting. Draco looked away from the windows when he heard the loud thump of Alexa's body hitting the floor. _

_Lucius muttered the spell that unfroze the girl and she immediately tried to crawl away, until she realized that Voldemort was standing behind her. She screamed when she saw his face, and lay on the floor sobbing brokenly. _

"_Please, please don't hurt me. Let me go. I won't tell anyone where I was… Please. Just let me go home to my family," she begged. Lucius just looked at her like she was something revolting, but Voldemort had a sickening smile on his horrible face._

"_I'm afraid that's not possible, girl. You see, Draco here needs you. He needs you in order to get back in my good graces. He needs to kill you," Voldemort said with mock sadness._

_Alexa sobbed even louder and crawled to Draco's feet. He was still wearing only his slacks, and was without a shirt or shoes. She grabbed at his pant legs and looked up at him._

"_Please don't kill me. Please. I'll do whatever you want, just don't kill me," she begged him. He just stared down into her blue eyes in shock. He had to kill this girl? Why? Then he realized exactly why. Voldemort wanted him to prove he wasn't weak. That he could kill without a second thought if his master ordered it. And the bastard had thrown the poor girl into his cage to mess with him. He wanted to see if he could take the life of an innocent. And that was what Alexa was, an innocent. An innocent muggle that didn't deserve any of this. She deserved to be home, in her bed, safe and sound, without any knowledge of wizards or magic._

_Lucius stormed over to where Draco was and kicked Alexa in her stomach to get her off of his son. It disgusted him to think a muggle was touching Draco. _

"_Do it, Draco. Kill this filth. Do it now and prove to our lord that you deserve your life," Lucius ordered. He then handed Draco his wand. Draco just looked at it dumbfounded. What was he supposed to do?_

"_Please…" Alexa whispered brokenly on the floor, holding her stomach where Lucius had kicked her._

"_Do it, Draco. Do it now."_

"_Please, don't."_

"_Do it!"_

"_Please."_

"_Do it now, Draco!"_

"_Avada Kedavra!" Draco screamed. The blast of green light hit the girl squarely in the chest and she flew backwards. Her dead blue eyes continued staring at him from her spot on the floor. He had done it. He had taken the life of an innocent. _

"_Very good, Draco," Voldemort's hissing laughter brought Draco out of his stupor. "You have proven to me that you deserve to live. I am proud. Now I will give you what you have always wanted…"_

_Voldemort glided toward Draco, his wand drawn. Draco didn't even flinch. He felt broken after what he had just done. He just continued staring into Alexa's eyes._

_Voldemort grabbed Draco's left arm, placed the tip of his wand against the pale flesh of his forearm, and said, "Morsmordre." _

_Draco yelped as his forearm felt like it was being carved into. He fell to his knees and clutched his arm to his chest. After the pain subsided, he stared in horror at what Voldemort had just done to him. He stared at the black design of the snake and skull. He stared at the Dark Mark. He was now a Death Eater._

Draco's eyes were closed and he could feel the tears slipping through his closed eyelids and down his pale cheeks. He thanked God that no one was there to see him break down like this. He inhaled slowly, held the breath in for a second, then exhaled again. He got control of himself and opened his eyes.

His stormy silver eyes were immediately drawn to his forearm which was tingling painfully from his memory. He cast a quick glance around the hallway to make sure no one was there, then slid his left sleeve slowly up to his elbow. He would never get used to seeing the hideous mark on his skin. It disgusted him but he was also kind of thankful for it. If it hadn't been for that whole experience, he would still be a mindless follower of Voldemort, desperate to become a Death Eater. Now that he was one, he was going to use it to destroy Voldemort. He didn't know how yet, but he was determined to find out.

Draco looked up again with a renewed determination. He WOULD destroy Voldemort, with or without Granger and Potter's help. Never again would he let that monster take advantage of him. He pulled his sleeve back down roughly and strode into the darkness of the hallway, continuing on his way to the Slytherin dungeons.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you all so much for reviewing. It makes me SOOO happy that you all seem to be loving the story I've spent FOREVER writing. As a reward for my 6 reviewers, I decided to post this next chapter a day earlier than I'd originally planned. So I hope you like it as much as the past couple. This is where things start to heat up a little bit for our beloved Dramione. Teehee. Enjoy…**

**CHAPTER 7:**

Hermione's mind was spinning all the way back to the Gryffindor common room. She absently shot the password in the Fat Lady's general direction and the portrait swung away from the wall, revealing the entrance to the fire-lit, red and gold common room.

She didn't even notice Ron, Ginny, and Harry staring at her from the same seats she'd seen them in so many hours ago as she raced up to her room. She ran up the stairs, threw open the door (silently thanking God that Lavender and Parvati weren't there), and sat down heavily on the end of her bed.

Hermione's mind was not functioning at its normal level at the moment. She just sat staring at the wall, even when Ginny came into the room and whispered, "Hermione…?"

Hermione looked at Ginny with unseeing eyes. It was like she looked through her. Ginny was worried. She placed a gentle hand on her best friend's shoulder and knelt down to look eye-to-eye with her.

"Hermione," she said again with a little more force. It seemed to get Hermione's attention.

"Oh my god, Gin. Oh my god," was all she could reply as she shook her curly brown head.

"What happened, sweetie? What's going on?" Ginny asked.

"Oh Merlin. I don't even know where to start. I can't think. Ugh." Hermione raised her hands to her face and Ginny noticed they were shaking.

"Tell me, Hermione. What happened? Talk to me," Ginny insisted and lifted herself up to sit down on the bed next to Hermione. She never took her hand off of her shoulder.

"Oh my God, where do I start? Well, you know that I was going down to meet Malfoy in the library?" When Ginny nodded, Hermione continued, "Well I told him about the Nexaddo and everything that I know about it. Then I came up here to get Harry's invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map. Then Malfoy and I went to look for that hallway."

"Oh Lord, Hermione! Malfoy knows about the map and the cloak? YOU showed them to him? Why would you ever do that? He's our enemy!" Ginny nearly shouted.

Hermione looked at the red-head disapprovingly. "Don't be daft, Ginny. I wouldn't have shown them to him if I didn't know for sure he would keep them a secret. I trust him, Gin. For whatever reason, I do. I can't explain it. But I know he won't betray me. Plus, he believes they're mine, not Harry's."

After a few seconds of thinking it over, Ginny said, "Okaaaay… I don't like it at all but I'll trust you. You just better not have messed up, Hermione. I just hope that Malfoy hasn't fooled you and sold some of our most important secrets to Voldemort."

Hermione's eyes darkened. She hated to think that Malfoy had anything to do with the Dark Lord, but she knew better than to believe he didn't. She knew how close his family was to Voldemort. She shivered. "I trust him," she whispered again.

"Okay," Ginny repeated, softer now, reassuring. "Go on and tell me the rest of the story."

"Well, we went looking for the hallway and we found it. We found the hole and everything and we jumped into it. Oh my God, Ginny. There was a letter in the hole addressed to me and Malfoy." Hermione dug the letter out of her pocket and handed it to the red-head. Ginny read it and with every word her forehead creased even more with concentration. After reading it, she looked up, horrified, into Hermione's worried eyes.

"Oh… Merlin…," was Ginny's response.

"I know. I don't understand it either, Gin, but it's obviously true. Dumbledore wrote that letter to us before he died, knowing full well what was going to happen." Hermione looked very sad.

"I can't believe it, Hermione. This is all so crazy. I can't even begin to imagine being in your shoes right now. You're being so strong. Just know that I'll be here for you every step of the way. And by the looks of things," she said gesturing to the letter, "Malfoy will be too. I don't know what to think about that. I mean, what do YOU think about it? And what was all that talk about Malfoy being on the side of light and all of that rubbish?"

"He's not a bad guy anymore, Ginny. Something's changed inside of him. I mean, he hasn't actually said anything to me about it, but I can tell just by looking at him. He's different. I mean, he still says cruel things to Harry, Ron, and me but I can tell his heart's just not in it. I think he's doing it to keep his image up around the other Slytherins more than anything. Oh God, Ginny. Everything has been so crazy tonight. I can't explain it. All of these feelings are rushing through me so fast I can't even identify them."

Ginny embraced her friend. "It's okay, 'Mione. I'm here for you."

"I know, Gin. I know. But I haven't gotten to the other crazy part, yet. After I read that letter out loud to Malfoy, I didn't know what to think or do. My flight instinct kicked in and I ran as fast as I could down the hallway. Malfoy ran after me and grabbed my arm and I don't know what came over me, but I threw myself at him. I wrapped my arms around him and sobbed into his chest. He just held me against him and let me cry. I mean he tensed up like a slab of marble at first, but after he realized I wasn't going to kill him, he just wrapped his arms around my back, and held me there. I'm so confused, Gin. What does this mean? What does all of this mean? Why am I feeling such strong feelings for Malfoy? Do you think it's because of the 'mind connection' that Dumbledore placed on us or do you think these feelings were inside of me the whole time? And what feelings are they anyway?" Hermione sighed exasperatedly and buried her face in her hands.

"I don't know, Hermione. That's something that you need to decide for yourself. I mean, it's obvious that you don't hate him anymore and from what I can tell, he doesn't hate you either. But do you think that your feelings for each other are more than that? Like romantically?" Ginny looked at Hermione with worry filling her brown eyes.

"I don't know, Ginny. I just don't know," was Hermione's muffled reply from inside of her hands.

"Hmmm… Well I think that you need to take this one step at a time. I think that you need to stop trying to figure it all out. For all we know, these 'feelings' that you may or may not have developed could have just been brought on by the fact that you guys have a history of strong feelings for each other, even if those feelings used to be hate. Maybe you've just been thinking about him differently because you're forced to be around each other and you've seen a change in him. We just can't know that without time. Give it time, 'Mione. You'll figure everything out in the end. You always do."

Hermione lifted her face out of her hands after a couple more seconds and looked at her friend. She attempted a smile, but it was half-hearted and she could tell it didn't work even without seeing it. Ginny just rubbed her shoulder.

"You should get to sleep. I'll make up something to tell Harry and Ron. Don't worry. You just need to rest and forget about all of this," Ginny said as she stood up. She walked to the door and looked back at Hermione.

"Yea. You're right, Gin. I'll get to sleep. Thank you. You're such a good friend, Ginny. I'm so glad that I don't have to be alone through this," she smiled a real smile at her this time. Ginny smiled back and left the room.

Hermione got up off the bed and walked over to her wardrobe. She pulled out another one of her new nightgowns. This one was black and lacy and it made her feel better just wearing it. She slipped back into bed, pulled the covers up to her chin, and fell asleep in minutes.

_Hermione was walking down a dark, empty corridor in her black tank top and jeans. She felt totally at peace and smiled. Looking over at one of the many windows lining the corridor, she saw the white light of the full moon through the glass. She was drawn to it._

_Hermione felt herself being pulled toward the window by some unknown force, but she didn't feel any danger. Her feet glided effortlessly over the cool stone of the floor until she reached the window. She placed her hands up on the stone windowsill and leaned against it. _

_Her eyes were drawn to the beautiful moon and she noticed it was double the size of the moon she was used to. It took her breath away and for some unknown reason, she could feel its rays warming her bare shoulders. Somewhere deep in her mind, she knew that that should be impossible, but it didn't register. Her mind was so clouded over by the beauty and the moon's warm caress she couldn't think of anything else._

_Suddenly Hermione felt a presence behind her and without turning around, she knew exactly who it was. _

"_Hello, Draco," she whispered breathily._

"_Hermione," he whispered in the same tone. Her eyes closed at hearing her name coming from his mouth. She smiled again._

_Draco walked up behind her and laid gentle hands on her shoulders. She leaned into his touch. He lightly traced his palms over her bare skin and she sighed. Then he pulled her up against him so the back of her head was resting on his chest. She leaned into him with no resistance at all. His hands slid languidly down her bare shoulders and arms and across her abs, where they stopped. He linked his hands together in front of her and his body heat enveloped her. _

_Draco was entranced by the beauty in front of him. He had been drawn to this hallway by something he didn't understand, but he felt strangely serene. Like everything in his life was perfect and right where it was supposed to be. Like the girl in his arms was exactly where she was supposed to be. He didn't understand it, but he didn't feel that he wanted to. _

_The smell wafting up from Hermione's wild mane of curls was intoxicating him. She smelled like lavender and pine and some other spices he couldn't indentify. Unthinkingly, he leaned his face down and buried it in her curls. He inhaled deeply and felt Hermione shiver against him. He moved his face down from the top of her head to her neck, where the smell was even stronger. Lightly, he nuzzled her right below her ear and she exhaled deeply. He gently brushed his lips over that place where her ear and her jawbone connect and she sighed again. _

_Hermione was experiencing something she'd never felt before, bliss. Feeling Draco's lips brush across her skin was the most perfect thing she had ever felt in her life. She HAD to look into his eyes. She needed to see the fire she knew was filling them. She turned around._

_Draco felt Hermione turning in his arms and he let her, but didn't let go. He was shocked by the heat in her gaze as she looked up into his silver eyes with her chocolate ones. He knew that his eyes had to be filled with that same fire. _

_He leaned down very slowly, as if to brush a light kiss over her slightly-parted lips, but instead, he got about an inch away and whispered, "Hermione…"_

_And again, "Hermione."_

"HERMIONE!" Ginny shouted from the side of her bed. Hermione's eyes flew open and she stared at her friend in shock. She was still breathless from her dream.

_OH…MY…GOD…._ Hermione thought when she remembered her dream. She immediately turned fire-engine red and Ginny noticed.

"What's wrong with you, Hermione? I was trying to wake you up for like ten minutes. That was some interesting dream you must have been having. You were murmuring things and moving about. What were you dreaming about?" Ginny asked confusedly.

Hermione silently thanked God that Ginny hadn't heard what she had been murmuring. Her friend would NEVER understand if she had heard her whispering Draco's name in her sleep. _Ugh. Malfoy. It's MALFOY, not Draco._ She nearly smacked herself.

"Ummmm… I was just… uh… flying." _Flying? Merlin, I'm an idiot._ Hermione thought to herself then looked sheepishly at Ginny.

Ginny looked at her skeptically. "Flying? But you hate flying."

"I know. That's why I was wriggling. Because I fell off my broom and I was falling through the air. Then you woke me up," replied Hermione. The excuse sounded ridiculous even to her own ears. But she couldn't tell Ginny the truth. It was way too embarrassing. She hated Malfoy, or at least, she thought she did. She truly didn't understand why she would have EVER dreamt something like THAT about him.

"Oookayyyyy…" said Ginny. "I was just waking you up because it's almost lunch time. We're all going down to the Great Hall together. You wanna come?" she asked.

"Oh. Yea. I'll get ready. Thanks," she said then got up. Ginny shook her head and left the room.

Hermione's skin felt electrically charged and she could almost have sworn that she could still feel Draco's hands gliding over her skin. It was the craziest feeling ever. Where the hell had that dream come from? And why had it felt so right, so perfect? Hermione felt like screaming. She was so confused.

"No. I won't let this mean anything. I'll just go to lunch with my friends, then we'll all come back to the common room and hang out around the fire like always. Yea. That's what I'll do. Draco Malfoy means nothing to me," Hermione was ranting to herself, but even as she whispered the last sentence she knew she was lying to herself. She was in way over her head now with the blonde and she didn't know what it meant. She could only pray that he hadn't shared her dream. He would think she was insane and never want to speak to her again. She didn't know why that thought bothered her, but she didn't want to contemplate it.

"Ugh," she said to herself, then got dressed and headed down to the common room where her friends were waiting expectantly.

"'Bout time, 'Mione. We've been waiting down here for ages," said Ron as soon as he saw her.

"It's only been like five minutes, Ron," said Harry exasperatedly. Hermione could tell that he hadn't heard the end of Ron's complaining that entire five minutes and she smiled. Yes, normalcy would do her good.

When she reached the bottom step, her three friends all turned around and they all walked together out of the portrait hole and down the hallway toward the Great Hall, talking about quidditch and complaining about teachers and homework the whole way there. Hermione loved her friends.

.ooOoo.

When the four friends reached the Great Hall and opened the doors, the noise was deafening. Almost everyone was there already and all of the tables were up to their usual games. A few of the Gryffindors were throwing food at each other and making a huge mess everywhere.

When Hermione looked up to the Professors' table in the front of the room, she saw a few of them shaking their heads, and the rest just ignored it and continued eating. She saw Headmistress McGonagall and she could have sworn that she saw the corner of the strict professor's mouth twitch up in a smile.

Hermione was surprised. She met the headmistress's twinkling gaze for an instant and headed over to her seat with Harry, Ron, and Ginny in tow. Ron and Harry immediately joined in the chaos. Ron grabbed the nearest bowl of peas and started shooting them at some unsuspecting Gryffindors while Harry grabbed the basket of rolls and proceeded to heave them at the Hufflepuff table. The game continued on for a while until the Hufflepuffs and the Gryffindors and a few Ravenclaws were joining in. The Slytherins just stared in disgust at the childishness.

Hermione, from her seat next to Harry, looked around the room in between heaving spoonfuls of mashed potatoes across the table. One pair of eyes stopped her movements in their tracks. Her eyes fell on Malfoy's and she noticed a flicker of amusement behind them. His sneer was firmly in place, but his eyes showed that he wasn't really annoyed. After he saw her looking at him, soaked in gravy and mustard and all sorts of other things, he nodded his head in an almost imperceptible acknowledgement. She replied in the same way and returned to flinging potatoes. She didn't look at him again.

"Ahem." That one noise stopped all of the chaos in its tracks. McGonagall was standing up in front of her table with her hands behind her back. "I think that is quite enough of this nonsense now. You all need to go up to your rooms and clean up," she said roughly, but anyone who knew her, knew that she was amused.

There were grumbles from around the room and people started to get up and leave. All of the food vanished off of the table and Hermione guessed that it was to keep people from continuing.

She heard Harry's laughter coming from her right, right before she felt his arm come around her shoulder. She looked at him and burst into laughter. Harry's messy mop of hair was soaking wet and was dripping pumpkin juice down his face. He had peas and mashed potatoes in his hair too and he looked happier than ever. His shirt was covered in all kinds of unidentifiable substances and it was absolutely disgusting. Hermione laughed even harder because she knew that she probably looked exactly like him.

The group walked back out of the Great Hall, all laughing and joking amongst themselves.

"Did you see the look on Neville's face when Trevor jumped on the table and landed in the pumpkin juice? It was priceless!" Ron was yelling at Lavender (who'd met them down at the Great Hall) and Ginny in excitement. Ginny was pink from laughing so hard. Yet again, Hermione thought about how much she loved her friends.

When they got back up to their rooms, they all got cleaned up. Hermione Scourgified her clothes and hung them back up in her closet, good as new. She then went to take a quick shower and met her friends back in the common room. They sat and played games and laughed about stupid stuff until it was late in the night and they all headed back up to bed again. This time, Hermione didn't dream a thing.

**I decided to add a bit of a fluffier chapter in here because everything was getting so dark and depressing. I figured Hermione needed a bit of a break, especially after her dream about Draco, and food fights always lighten the mood. :D So what did you all think? Let me know in a review! I'm going to wait to post the next chapter until I have at least 15 reviews, K? So please, please review. It keeps me motivated and lets me know what people think of my writing. Thanks everyone! ;D**

**Much love, MBS.**


	8. Chapter 8

**So I just wanted to start off by saying I can't believe how quickly I got my 15 reviews. I'll need to place the mark much higher next time. Haha. But I promised I'd post this after 15 so I'm going to. Thank you all so much. It's awesome that you guys are all so supportive. Now as for this chapter, I want to begin by saying it's one of my favorites. I hope you love it as much as I do! Enjoy…**

**CHAPTER 8:**

When Hermione woke up to her alarm screeching painfully in her ears that Monday morning, she groaned and covered her face with her pillow. After a second, she heaved herself out of bed and padded groggily over to her wardrobe. She flung the doors open and picked out a pale grey blouse and black slacks. She grabbed some underwear and a bra and headed over to the showers.

Hermione was exhausted still and she didn't know why. As she washed herself and let the water pour down over her skin, she thought about her dream from the previous night. She didn't know why she would have had a dream like that. I mean, she hadn't even considered letting Malfoy touch her. The only reason she threw herself at him in that hallway was because she had been so distraught. So why in Merlin's name would she have dreamed such an intense dream about him? It just didn't make sense.

What made even less sense were the feelings she felt during that whole dream. Like she was in heaven and nothing could stop that feeling. Like it was totally and completely RIGHT to be that close to Malfoy, like it was familiar. But that didn't make sense at all because she had never been that way with a guy. The closest she'd come to any sort of sensuality was when Viktor Krum had kissed Hermione after the ball her fourth year. And as nice as it was for someone so cute and famous to kiss her, there was just no passion in it. She had expected much more from her first kiss.

Hermione sighed deeply and turned off the water. Class would be starting soon and that meant she had to see Malfoy. She still didn't know whether or not he'd shared that dream with her and she was incredibly nervous about it. She didn't know what his reaction would be if he had. Which led her to think about yesterday at lunch. When she had looked at him yesterday, he hadn't had that angry glint he sometimes got. He looked… curious actually. She wondered why that was. A deep part of her mind was telling her that it wasn't just because of the fact that she was making a fool of herself along with the rest of the Gryffindors. No… she thought it went deeper than that but she wasn't sure.

"Oh Merlin, this is just too much for me," she whispered to herself as she got dressed. She wasn't hungry and she thought breakfast would be over soon anyway. Hermione just sat down on her bed and grabbed her Advanced Arithmancy book off of her trunk to study for their lesson today.

The next thing Hermione knew, the alarm she'd set was ringing to signal the end of breakfast, and the start of classes. She heaved herself up out of bed and headed out into the hallway. If she was being completely honest with herself, she was dreading being so close to Malfoy for such a long time. She didn't know what to expect.

Hermione solidified her resolve before stepping into the Arithmancy classroom. She walked with purpose to her seat and sat down without looking once at the platinum blonde head behind her. She refused to make this harder than it needed to be.

"Hey there," said Alan, the Ravenclaw boy she shared her table with. Immediately, Hermione felt eyes on the back of her head.

"Hi," she replied and looked down at her papers again. She didn't feel like talking right now, especially if he was going to interrogate her about Harry like he had the first day.

"So have you heard about the Costume Ball that the teachers have been whispering about all weekend?" Alan announced rather proudly to her. He looked at her almost like he deserved a cookie. But nevertheless, it intrigued her, just like he knew it would.

"A Costume Ball? No, I haven't heard anything about it. That's interesting," said Hermione as she got lost in her thoughts. _Why hasn't anyone said anything? Why haven't the teachers said anything?_

"I guess it hasn't been announced yet because the headmistress isn't fond of the idea," said Alan knowingly. It was almost eerie that he answered her questions without even hearing them.

"Oh. Well I guess that makes sense after Dumbledore and everything. I would think McGonagall would want to keep this year going quietly until all of the shock passes," Hermione answered. She didn't know for sure why the headmistress would not be fond of the idea of a ball but he didn't need to know that.

"Well, yea. But I heard that the other professors have been working hard on her and that she's close to caving in. I heard it might end up being held during the Christmas hols and that it would only be open to sixth and seventh years." Alan was beaming when Hermione looked up into his face. He looked so proud of himself.

"That's great, Alan, but I think that you should probably keep all of this information to yourself. If the professors are keeping it quiet, it's probably for a good reason, especially since it hasn't been approved yet," said Hermione gently, then looked back down to her paper. She wasn't really seeing the sheet in front of her. She was trying to puzzle out the reasons behind McGonagall's resistance.

"I guess, but the reason I told you is because I wanted to ask you if you wanted to come with me. As my date or something?" said Alan. It startled her and she looked into his face again. She felt the eyes on the back of her head again. She knew that Malfoy would be interested in hearing her answer. Probably just to make fun of her later. Luckily for her, Professor Vector came in and saved her the embarrassment of turning the poor boy down.

"Hello, class. Please open your books to page 127 and we will begin the lesson," boomed the professor.

Luckily, the lesson was a difficult one, full of notes, and Hermione didn't have time to look up at Alan again. When the bell rang, she was out of her seat and into the hallway before anyone else. She had escaped, for today at least.

Hermione's next two classes, Advanced Ancient Runes and Advanced Charms, went by pretty quickly too. Since Hermione got OWLs on all of her tests, the classes she placed into were very difficult and required a lot of notes. Before she knew it, it was lunchtime and she was headed back down to the Great Hall.

Lunch was pretty normal, all-in-all, except for one part. Sometime during the middle of the lunch period, three standard, brown, school owls flew over the Gryffindor table and dropped notes to Harry, Hermione, and Ron. They all looked at each other, confused, notes in hand, but looked down to open them.

_Miss Granger,_

_I would appreciate it if you, along with Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley, would come to my office at 4:00pm. I have something very important to share with you. The password is 'Canary Creams.' _

_Thank you for your cooperation,_

_Headmistress McGonagall_

When Hermione finished reading hers, she looked up at Harry and Ron. They were both done reading, too.

"What do you think she has for us up there?" asked Ron.

"I don't know, but it's got to be important. Otherwise she could just give it to us after class or something," said Harry, looking back down at his note again with his brow furrowed.

"Strange," was all Hermione said.

When lunch ended, Hermione headed off to Advanced Transfiguration with Harry and Ron. It was one of the four classes the trio had together. When they arrived, they sat down at their usual seats on the right side of the room. The other students filed in, including Malfoy, who sat in his usual seat in the middle of the Slytherins on the left side of the room in the very back corner.

Hermione noticed that he was holding a folded piece of parchment, much like the ones that Harry, Ron, and herself had received. _Strange._ _What could she want with all of us?, _Hermione wondered. The professor walked in, business as usual, and the lesson went smoothly. Before they knew it, the bell rang, and they were all released.

Hermione got up and turned around. She saw a platinum blonde head rushing out of the doors, with his usual trail of followers behind him. From the look of things, he was trying to get away from his followers, but she wasn't sure. She just shook her head and continued walking, Harry and Ron in tow.

The three friends headed to Advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Lupin (he decided he was going to come back and teach this year but Hermione had a suspicion that it was mainly so the werewolf could keep an eye on Harry). Before she knew it, classes were over and it was 3:45. Hermione hurried to get to the room on time, leaving Ron and Harry behind to talk to Lupin for a few minutes about their lesson on vampires. She could never stand being late.

"Canary Creams," Hermione whispered to the statue and it jumped to the side to reveal the moving spiral staircase that led up to the headmistress's office.

"Hold on, Granger," a silky voice drawled from behind her. Hermione and Malfoy stepped onto the staircase together. "So what do you think she wants with us?" he asked, not really seeming like he cared, but making conversation anyway.

"I don't know. But Harry and Ron got letters too," she answered, trying to ignore their close proximity in the moving staircase.

Draco sneered. _Of course Potter and the Weasel would be invited too. McGonagall wouldn't dare separate the Golden Trio. Merlin forbid the two imbeciles NOT be involved with something secretive._

The staircase stopped moving and there was a heavy oak door in front of them. Malfoy stepped forward and grabbed the knocker.

"Come in," said McGonagall's voice from behind the door.

Draco opened the door and was surprised at the room. All of the walls were covered in pictures of what Draco could only guess were previous headmasters and headmistresses. And there were silver and gold objects that Draco couldn't recognize EVERYWHERE, spinning and swirling. They covered the large oak desk and the tables that were around the room.

Hermione gasped and ran over to a wall. "Oh, Professor Dumbledore!" she cried. "We've missed you so much."

"Well, my dear Hermione. You can always feel free to visit me up here, though I am just a portrait. I am sure Minerva wouldn't mind lending her office to you and Mr. Malfoy if you explained to her the reason," said Dumbledore's portrait on the wall, just as knowingly as Dumbledore spoke when he was alive.

McGonagall stepped out of what could only be assumed was her bedroom.

"Oh, hello Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy. Please, sit down," she gestured to two of the chairs that were in front of her desk. The two did as they were asked, Hermione taking a chair directly in front of the desk, while Draco took one further to the side.

"You kept the room the same," whispered Hermione with glistening eyes.

McGonagall looked around the room sadly. "Yes… Everything but Fawkes."

Both Hermione's and the professor's eyes were drawn to the corner behind the door that used to be home to Dumbledore's magnificent phoenix, Fawkes. Fawkes had disappeared when Dumbledore died and no one knew where he had gone. It made Hermione sad to think about it so she changed the subject.

"So why are we here, Professor?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Oh, I'll explain it all as soon as our two other guests arrive. Ah, here they are now," McGonagall said when they heard the stone staircase moving again. Sure enough, Harry and Ron knocked a minute later. "Come in!" said McGonagall.

Harry and Ron entered, laughing light-heartedly. As soon as they saw Malfoy, however, they reached for their wands.

"Now, I will not have any fighting in my office, do you understand me?" said McGonagall angrily. Draco just sat in his chair, cocking an eyebrow at the two Gryffindor boys, almost like he was bored. Hermione got up and grabbed each of the boys' arms and pulled them down into the seats next to her, and as far away from Malfoy as possible.

"What is HE doing here, Professor? You have to know that he's working for You-Know-Who?" asked Ron.

McGonagall looked like steam was going to come out of her ears. "That is quite enough of this nonsense, Mr. Weasley. You need to get over your hostilities toward one another once and for all. These are troubled times for the wizarding world and we don't need any more animosities. Especially between people on the SAME SIDE."

With that, Ron and Harry's eyes snapped over to meet Draco's. "Yes, Weasley. I know it's an incredibly difficult concept for you to wrap your rather dense head around, but it's true. I am on the side of Light," said Draco with a smirk.

"Yea right! You can't possibly believe him, Professor! He's the son of a Death Eater!" said Ron exasperatedly.

"Actually," Draco drawled and stood up. "I AM a Death Eater." With that he pulled up his left sleeve and revealed the black, inky, swirling shape of the skull and the snake that made up the Dark Mark. Hermione gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. She stared in horror at his arm. Draco looked at her and explained softly, "I didn't want it. It was forced on me. The Dark Lord forced me to kill someone and then he used it to Mark me. I swear, I didn't want it."

Luckily, neither Ron nor Harry realized that he was only trying to reassure Hermione. "Oh, Merlin, Professor! He's a Death Eater, and you trust him?! That's what got Dumbledore killed!" Both Ron and Harry were standing up now, furious.

McGonagall stared at them dully. "Yes, Mr. Weasley, I DO trust him. And you should probably get the full story before you jump to conclusions. You see, Dumbledore didn't die because he trusted the wrong person, he died because he asked his very good friend to take his life. He was very sick." Now she was looking softly at Harry. She knew that Harry was the one most affected by the loss and she knew he needed to know the truth. "Professor Dumbledore was already dying when he was killed. Before the invasion of the school even started, Dumbledore met with Professor Snape and he asked him for a favor. He asked him to take his life so that Mr. Malfoy here wouldn't have to. So even though Snape didn't want to, he did it anyway, out of loyalty to Professor Dumbledore," the headmistress explained.

Harry was stunned into silence. Everyone was. Even Draco didn't know the full story. He had only come to the headmistress recently to ask for her help and to tell her his story. He needed to make sure she knew he was on the side of Light. That he was going to be a double-agent, so-to-speak, like Snape apparently was.

"So Snape was never loyal to the Dark Lord, was he? That explains why he asked him to spare me. Because Dumbledore wanted to make sure I was protected," said Draco, puzzling it out in his own head. It was starting to make sense. "He knew that I was going to be an asset for the side of Light during the war so he made sure that I was going to be kept safe."

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy. And he also protected you because of the vow he made to your mother," McGonagall said softly.

Draco's head snapped up. "What vow?"

"Narcissa went to Severus's house during the summer before your sixth year and begged Snape to protect you. She made him take part in an unbreakable vow between him and herself. In that vow, she made him swear to look after you and protect you. The biggest part of the vow, though, was when she made him swear to carry out the murder if you couldn't. Severus told Dumbledore about this and it fit into his plan perfectly. He didn't want YOU to kill him, Draco. He wanted to make sure you didn't have that on your conscience. He knew that you were destined for far greater things than that. And I am very sorry that we couldn't protect you from what your father and Lord Voldemort put you through after that horrible night. Yes, Severus told us about the tortures. We couldn't put you or Severus in even more danger by giving away your true loyalties. I'm sorry," McGonagall looked sadly at him.

Draco was feeling very uncomfortable with where this conversation was going. He didn't need the three Gryffindors to know about what had happened to him. He didn't need pity from anyone. "It doesn't matter now. Without this Mark, I wouldn't be able to help you. Don't feel sorry for me," he said almost angrily.

For once, Ron and Harry had nothing to say. But Hermione just sat there staring at him. She had no idea what had happened to him after the invasion of Hogwarts and when the professor mentioned torture her brown eyes went wide. Draco met her eyes, then looked away quickly.

"Well, anyways, this was not what I brought you all here for. I have something more important I need to teach you. Do we all think we can handle a lesson right now?" she looked around at them sternly and they all nodded. "Okay, good. I am going to teach you all how to become Animaguses."

Hermione gasped again and the noise startled everyone out of their shock.

"Why, Professor?" asked Harry, his mind immediately conjuring a picture of his father and the other Marauders.

"Because it will be very helpful in the upcoming war. Voldemort will not be expecting it. I think it is a very important skill to learn. So anyways, get up, all of you. Go find a place to stand so we can practice."

All four of the students got up and found places to stand. Draco gravitated toward Hermione without even thinking about it.

"Alright. The spell for this is pretty simple. It is just '_Animagus Mihi_.' Just say the spell and close your eyes. It's easier to do it that way for the first couple of times. After a while you won't have to close your eyes. And after you get used to using the spell often, you won't even have to say the words. You will just be able to turn into your animal at will. Now go ahead and try it."

"Professor, I already was taught how to do this. Do I still have to stay here?" asked Draco begrudgingly.

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy. You need to practice, I'm sure. Go ahead," she said, testing him. All three of the Gryffindors' eyes were on him. He ground his teeth in frustration, not wanting to have to prove his skills in front of the bloody Golden Trio.

Without a word, Draco transformed. From his spot on the floor, he heard Hermione gasp.

"Wow. Ironic," said Weasley's voice from above him and he heard Potter snicker.

The large, black king cobra that was now sitting where Draco had been standing previously was getting agitated. He didn't like having to prove himself in front of these people. He could feel his hood flaring out and he hissed at Potter and the Weasel.

"I'd like to see you gits transform then. Then we'll see whose form is more ironic," Draco hissed. Potter's eyes went wide.

"Oh my God! I can understand him!" Harry shouted. "I can understand you!" he hissed to Draco.

"Great, so not only do I have to deal with your idiocy when I'm in human form, but I also have to deal with you in my animagus form," he hissed frustratedly.

"Hey. You better watch it. I can squash you right now if I want to. You are just a little snake you know," Harry hissed testily, even though he knew he was bluffing. The snake was around eight feet long and had a diameter of about eight inches, and there was no way he would be able to get within three feet of him, much less step on him, without getting bitten.

"Oh come on over here then, and we'll see who walks away unscathed," hissed Draco. He bared his inch-long, dripping fangs as him and raised half of his eight-foot-long body off of the floor. Potter took a step back. "That's right," laughed the snake.

Draco transformed back into his human form and he was still laughing. That is, until he saw Hermione staring at him in shock. That sobered him up instantly. "It's not like I was going to bite him," he said exasperatedly.

Professor McGonagall broke the silence. "Fantastic, Mr. Malfoy. I'm sure your form will be a great asset to our side. Now you three try it," she said, gesturing to the three Gryffindors.

After what seemed like hours (and probably WAS), Harry was the first of the three to succeed. One second, Harry was standing there, and the next, there was a beautiful golden eagle standing in his place.

"Oh, wow, Harry. You're beautiful," sighed Hermione as she went over and lifted the large eagle on her arm, brushing her fingers lightly over his smooth feathers. Harry ruffled his feathers happily at her praise. His bright green eyes gazed lovingly at Hermione, and it made Draco want to look away. He didn't like seeing Hermione so comfortable with the Boy Who Lived. Hermione smiled and laughed, then said, "Try to fly."

The Harry-eagle nodded its head once and steeled its eyes in concentration. Suddenly, the heavy bird took off from her arm and circled around the room. He dived toward Draco and let out what could only pass as a laugh when the blonde ducked out of the way. Ron laughed so hard that he was doubled over and clutching his chest when Harry changed back into human form.

Draco wasn't amused. But he was secretly impressed by Potter's form. The eagle was a powerful animal and could do serious damage if it needed to. Plus, he thought grudgingly, he can fly.

"Impressive, Harry, very impressive. Now it's up to you two," said McGonagall, looking at Hermione and Ron.

Draco and Harry spent the rest of their time changing into their forms and tormenting each other. They weren't trying to inflict permanent damage, but they certainly weren't being easy on one another, and both ended up with some scratches. It was very distracting for Hermione to have the boys fighting near her. Or at least that was what Hermione was blaming her complete inability to transform on. She couldn't bear to think that it was her own skills, or lack thereof.

Ron was still standing in his spot muttering the spell over and over again to himself with a scowl on his face that deepened with every useless shake of his wand. Harry walked over to him and said, "Hey, mate. You want a tip? First, say the words with command. Make sure the wand knows you're serious. Second, think like an animal. Think with that part of you and not the logical part of you. It might help."

"Yea… I'll try it, mate. Thanks." Harry smiled and nodded, then walked back to his spot, turned into the eagle again, and flew around the room some more.

"Animagus Mihi!" boomed Ron. Suddenly, Ron wasn't there anymore and a magnificent red horse stood in his place. Hermione was in awe. She walked over to the stunned-looking horse and touched its nose. It snorted on her hand, almost like it just let out a relieved sigh. Hermione whispered, "Great job, Ron." She walked around him, stroking him all the way. She had always loved horses and thought it was awesome that Ron had turned into one. It would be very useful during the final battle, she was sure.

Draco stood, watching Granger stroke the Weasel, or rather the horse, and he felt a little bit of jealousy rise up. He couldn't explain it. Of course the stupid Weasel would turn into a bloody magnificent animal. The fates always worked that way. Draco sighed frustratedly.

The eagle quit circling the room and landed on the ground in human form. "Amazing, mate!" yelled Harry, thwacking human Ron on the shoulder roughly. Ron laughed and encircled his friends in a huge hug. They were all laughing and Draco stood on the sidelines, not knowing what that was like. Deep down, he had always been jealous of the friendship that the three Gryffindors had. In Slytherin, you could never really trust your friends. If something bad happened, you could always count on your friends abandoning you to save their own hides. But the Golden Trio wasn't like that. Just by watching them now, encouraging each other so lovingly, it was obvious to Draco that they would die for each other without a second thought. Draco didn't understand it, but he longed for it.

Before Hermione knew it, the lesson was over, and she STILL hadn't mastered the spell. She was so disappointed that she was muttering to herself under her breath. While Harry and Ron were distracted, Draco whispered to Hermione, "Meet me at midnight. You'll be able to find me with that map of yours." She looked like she was going to refuse so he whispered, "Please. Just meet me."

It was the please that did it for Hermione. Draco Malfoy never said please, so she was intrigued. She nodded once and walked toward her friends.

"Oh, 'Mione. I'm sorry you didn't find your form. You'll get it for sure next time. I know you will," said Harry encouragingly. He wrapped his arm around Hermione's shoulders and they all walked out of the room, linked like that, after thanking the professor.

"Mr. Malfoy. If it would be alright with you, I'd like to speak with you for a minute," she said, gesturing to a chair in front of her desk. She sat down and he took his seat too.

"Yes, Professor?" he asked, wishing he could just go back to his room in the dungeons and wallow in his self-pity.

"Firstly, I wanted to tell you that you are now a member of what we call the Order of the Phoenix. It is the organization that Dumbledore formed to fight against the Dark Lord. All three of the students that were just in here are members, along with many other people you have not yet met and some you have. I will tell you more about it later. Secondly, I wanted to speak with you about what is going on between you and Miss Granger," she said, straight to the point. Draco appreciated that. He hated it when people skated around a difficult subject. It made him respect the headmistress a little more.

"What about us?" he asked.

"I've been hearing some interesting things from Professor Dumbledore over there," she gestured at the portrait of the headmaster, who was curiously missing from his frame. "For instance, that he put a spell on the two of you and that your dreams are connected. And that he left a note for you in an abandoned seventh floor corridor. I am guessing that you have found the note, seeing your lack of hostility toward one another."

"Yes, we found the note. And yes, we have cooled down the animosity quite a bit," he answered. His eyes unfocused and he whispered, "She's not the girl I thought she was."

"She is a pretty amazing witch. And she has a lot of love in her heart that she gives out almost too easily. Don't hurt her, Mr. Malfoy," she warned.

Draco's eyes snapped up. "And what makes you think that we're anything more than begrudged partners?" he asked the headmistress. She was becoming more and more like Dumbledore every day with her knowledge of things that no one had spoken of.

"Let's just say I have some good sources. Plus, you don't make it difficult to see that you care for her. Just watch out for her, Draco. She needs people around her that care for her more than they care for themselves, which I know doesn't come easily for the Slytherin House. But if you don't learn to care for people with all of your heart, you will not survive this war. Our greatest asset is our love. You need to learn to love, Mr. Malfoy." With that the headmistress got up from her seat. "I would appreciate it if you would meet me every Monday at this time so that we can speak about what needs to be done about your situation." Her eyes flicked down to his arm.

"Yes, Professor," Draco replied. He nodded to the headmistress and left her office. By that time, it was nearing 8:00. Draco and Hermione's meeting was scheduled for four hours from now. Draco sighed and headed down to the Slytherin dormitories.

"Purebloods," he whispered to the bare stone wall where he knew the door to the common room was hidden. Some of the stones slid aside to reveal the entrance. He stepped into the low, dimly lit common room.

"Draco!" yelled an annoyingly high-pitched voice just as the owner of the voice jumped on him, wrapping her thin arms around his neck. Pansy planted a wet kiss on Draco's unresponsive lips. He scowled and shoved her off of him. Pansy pouted.

Draco looked around the common room. The room was decorated from floor to ceiling in the Slytherin colors of silver and green. Silver wall sconces were set periodically around the walls, and aside from those candle-lit sconces, the only other light source was the large chandelier that hung from the low ceiling. Since there was no electricity in Hogwarts, the chandelier housed about 100 candles. It still didn't do much to light up the long room.

"Well, hello Draco. Where did you run off to after class, hmm?" asked a thin, dark-skinned boy from his seat on one of the four dark green couches that surrounded a table in the middle of the room. Crabbe and Goyle, the stupid oafs, were sitting on either side of him, staring off into space. They really were dull. Draco didn't know how they managed to pass enough classes each year to be allowed to come back.

"Blaise. McGonagall called me up to her office to interrogate me about my allegiance to the Dark Lord. Stupid old hag was very put-out when I denied everything," Draco smirked convincingly. He was very, very good at lying. Even though Blaise didn't have any loyalties to Voldemort, he did have loyalties to his House, and he wouldn't have been happy to hear that Draco had just been up in the headmistress's office playing animagus with three Gryffindors, especially not the Golden Trio.

Blaise narrowed his dark eyes at him, then, deciding Draco was telling the truth, said, "Well, that's good. Let the shrew stay oblivious to what is going on right under her nose." With that, Blaise looked back down to the book he held in his long, thin fingers.

Draco turned on his heel and headed down one of the long hallways that led to his rooms. Unlike in Gryffindor, the Slytherins only had two students to a room. Lucky for Draco, every other Slytherin feared and respected him, so he always got his room to himself.

_Ahhh… peace at last,_ thought Draco as he stepped into his room. He pulled his shirt over his head and threw it on the chair by his desk. He was about to turn to close the door until he heard someone behind him, in the doorway.

"What is it?" he snapped without turning around. He closed his eyes angrily when he felt a cold, little hand running its fingers down his scarred back. He tensed up and she mistook the meaning of his muscles going hard under her fingers.

"Draco, baby. Let me take the stress away," crooned Pansy from behind him as she wrapped her arms around his naked waist.

"Get out, Pansy. I want to sleep and I don't want you here," he growled between his teeth.

The small, dark-haired girl stepped out from behind him to stop in front of him. She scrunched her pug-like nose at him. "No. I am not leaving. I don't know WHAT is wrong with you but I'm tired of you putting me off. Whether you like it or not, our families have been planning our wedding for years now. It's about time you started acting like a husband." She placed her hands on her thin hips.

"We're not married yet, Pansy. You can just leave me alone until we are," he glared at her, fully intending to never marry the whiny little snob in front of him. He would rather die.

She flinched for a second, unsure of what he would do in his anger.

"No, Draco. What has changed between us? Why won't you ever touch me anymore?" she whined.

Draco put his face right in front of hers and hissed, "Because you disgust me. I'd rather sleep alone than sleep with you. Now, GET OUT!"

Pansy jumped and glared at him for a second, but realized it would be in her best interest to leave now before she made him do something she would regret. She added a quick, "Just wait until Lucius hears about this," and ran out of the room.

"Ahhhh!" Draco yelled after slamming his door shut so hard he made the stone walls quiver. He leaned his head against the cool stone to calm himself. He needed to get some sleep before his meeting with Granger. "Ugh," grunted Draco. He didn't know what to do about the know-it-all Gryffindor.

Draco had no idea what to think after that dream he had just had the other night that he was sure she had had too. He didn't understand where it had come from or WHY he had felt so compelled to touch her. No matter what he tried to tell himself, he had touched her in that dream because he'd wanted to. And today, at that meeting, he'd felt an insane urge to reassure her about his Dark Mark. He was actually worried about what she would think of him.

"What in Merlin's name is the MATTER with me?" Draco muttered. He then walked across the small room to his king-sized, four-poster bed with forest-colored, 1000 thread-count, Egyptian cotton sheets. He pulled back the covers and crawled into bed.

Draco sighed at the feeling of the silky fabric gliding over his scarred skin. It felt like heaven, well, almost. It was the closest to heaven he had felt before he had felt Granger's body against his in that dream. Why was he so fascinated with the Mudblood? Why couldn't he get his mind off of her? He was a Malfoy, for Merlin's sake, even if he didn't live up to the whole 'evil-dark-wizard' persona that his father was so proud of. He still had his name and his pure blood. So why didn't that seem to matter to him anymore? Why was he starting to believe that the little Gryffindor bookworm and the brains of the Golden Trio was worth the sacrifice?

Draco buried his face in his pillow. "I'll just get to sleep and hopefully when I wake up, this will all have just turned out to be some horrible nightmare." Draco closed his eyes, and after a couple of minutes, he fell asleep. He dreamt of chocolate-colored eyes, and curly brown hair.

**Soooo… what did you guys think? Did you love it? Let me know in a review, please. **** This time, I'm going to hold off on posting for a couple of days, though if I get a lot of reviews that might just make me post quicker… *hint hint*. I'm not going to give you guys a mark this time. You can decide what "a lot" means. Haha. Thanks for reading, everyone!**

**Love, MBS**


	9. Chapter 9

**Yes, yes. I know it's supposed to be a lot harder to master being an animagus than it was for the Golden Trio, but I just chock that up to the fact that they're the Golden Trio. Haha. Thank you guys for all of your reviews. You all encourage me to keep going, though I've gotten quite stuck while writing chapter 13, which is why I'm taking longer posting these than I'd like to. *frowny face*. But alas, here's another chapter. In this one, our favorite begrudged couple make a decision that will change their relationship forever. Bwahahaha…! I love this chapter too. So enjoy…**

**CHAPTER 9:**

Hermione hadn't gotten any sleep at all, even knowing that she had class in a little over nine hours. She had stayed up, staring at the ceiling with the curtains around her bed closed so she didn't have to face the questions her roommates would have been sure to ask if they had seen her wide awake. Finally, Hermione looked at her clock and it read 11:30. She figured she would need a half hour to find the Slytherin on the map she had borrowed from Harry when they had returned to their House. He had narrowed his eyes curiously at her for a second when she asked, but he didn't ask any questions.

Hermione slowly crept out of her bed, fully clothed, and headed out of her room and down the stairs to the common room. She didn't see anyone sitting around so she just crept quietly out of the portrait hole.

"Lumos," she whispered as she pulled out the map. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," she whispered again with her wand against the tattered piece of parchment.

Hermione opened the folded paper and examined it closely. Finally, she saw the small black dot labeled Draco Malfoy and headed to the seventh floor corridor in which the dot was pacing.

With every step Hermione took closer to where she knew Malfoy would be, she got more and more nervous. She didn't know why he had wanted to meet with her in the first place, let alone why that urge had been so bad for him that he had even said 'please'. She shook her head at the memory and ordered her feet to continue along.

When Draco heard the small footsteps approaching, he stopped his pacing and spun around. His heart sped up as he looked at her. The light from the moon shining through one of the hall's windows lit up Hermione's wild curls like a halo. Draco felt his breath catch, then scolded himself. He shouldn't care what the moonlight did to the Mudblood's hair.

"Hello," Hermione whispered. She had no idea why she was feeling so breathless looking at Malfoy looking at her. His silver eyes were like mercury pools glistening in the moonlight. Hermione took a step closer involuntarily and noticed her surroundings.

On the wall to her right she noticed a very familiar painting and she gasped. Malfoy had brought her to the Room of Requirement.

Draco noticed her taking in her surroundings and felt a slight flush rising to his cheeks. He silently thanked God that it was too dark for Granger to notice. Malfoy's don't blush. He had thought long and hard about where he wanted to meet her and it just so happened that the Room of Requirement was the perfect place, even if it brought back memories for both of them of that horrible night so many months ago.

Draco turned around, paced back and forth three times in front of the blank wall opposite the painting with a look of concentration on his face. After he was done, a door appeared and Draco opened it, motioning for Hermione to come inside. She obliged.

When Hermione stepped into the room, she noticed that one of the walls was mirrored. Against the wall opposite the mirrors, there was a large plush sofa. A table sat in front of the sofa with a small glass pitcher of what looked like ice water and two glasses. Other than that, the room was rather empty, compared to what Hermione was used to.

Draco walked to the couch and sat down. Hermione followed him and was surprised when he picked up a glass, filled it with water, and handed it to her. She wasn't used to him being gentlemanly. It took her off guard.

"So I guess you're wondering why I brought you here," Draco looked up into Hermione's eyes. She nodded slightly, urging him to continue. "Well I wanted to try and teach you how to become an animagus."

Hermione flushed. She was still quite embarrassed that she had failed so horribly before, especially in front of Malfoy. "Well I don't need you to try and teach me. It's obvious it's just not one of my talents," she snapped and stood up, fully intending to walk back to the door and out of the room.

"Wait," Draco said as he grabbed her wrist gently. "Don't go. I think you will learn it if I teach you," he whispered.

Hermione exhaled slowly and turned around to face him. She noticed how tall he was when she turned and came face to chest with him. She stumbled back quickly and pulled her arm away from his gentle grip. "Fine," she muttered and walked to the middle of the room. Draco followed.

"Okay. Firstly, I think it will be a lot easier for you if you let go of all of your book knowledge and all of the things you THINK you know about the transformation. Forget all of that. It isn't of any use when you're actually trying to transform." Hermione opened her mouth to protest, but Draco raised his hand and said, "Just trust me. I've made the transformation many times. I was just like you in the beginning, thinking that all I needed was what I'd learned in the books I had read. I was wrong. Those things just hinder you. Let go of them."

Hermione sighed and closed her eyes to try and do as he suggested. She focused on every detail she had learned about animaguses and concentrated on putting those things to the back of her mind. It took her a little while, but Draco stood by patiently. When Hermione opened her eyes again to look at him, his breath caught in his throat. Her eyes were heavy-lidded, like she had just awakened.

"Okay. Now concentrate on your animal nature. Focus on the sounds and smells and feelings around you," he whispered, so as not to startle her out of her trance-like state.

Hermione closed her eyes again and did as he asked. She inhaled deeply and concentrated on what she smelled. Suddenly his scent hit her senses and her eyes flew open. He smelled delicious, like hot spices on a summer morning, mixed with a musky, purely male scent. She couldn't stop herself from taking those steps toward him, until she gently took his shirt in her hands, held it up to her nose, and inhaled deeply. Hermione almost growled he smelled so good.

Draco was startled when the small brunette stalked over to him and placed her face in his shirt, but he didn't say a word. He knew that she was no longer thinking like a human, but like an animal. She was just a step away from her transformation.

Draco whispered even more quietly, "Now pick up your wand and say the spell, Granger."

Without stepping away from him, she pulled her wand out of her pocket and said, "_Animagus Mihi_."

Next thing he knew, Granger disappeared and he was looking into the rich chocolate brown eyes of a sleek black panther. The panther looked at him in surprise.

"Good job, Granger," Draco whispered with a self-satisfied smile on his face.

Hermione looked down at her black, long-clawed paws and exhaled. It took her a couple of seconds more to overcome the shock. When she looked up into Malfoy's eyes again, the surprise was replaced with a look of mischief. Malfoy's eyes narrowed at the look and he took a step back.

Hermione crouched down with her front paws and the panther part of her was excited when he backed away even further. Suddenly, she pounced on him, her front paws colliding with his chest, sending him sprawling backward. His back collided with the floor and she was face to face with him, standing on his chest. Draco cursed roughly until he met the chocolate eyes of the cat's that were so like the human's.

Hermione was taken out of her playful mood when she saw Malfoy's eyes becoming heated. Next thing she knew, she was back in her human body, but she was still laying on Malfoy's muscled chest on the floor. Hermione's breath caught again. What had she just gotten herself into?

Draco exhaled roughly and cursed under his breath for what he was about to do. He just couldn't handle it anymore. Draco wrapped one of his arms around Hermione's small waist, plunged the other long, pale hand into her mane, and crushed his lips to hers. She went completely still for the first second, then quickly responded with the same fervor. She shoved her hands into his pale blonde locks and kissed him back with as much passion as she could muster. Deep down, she had known this was coming and she could finally admit to herself how badly she had wanted it.

Hermione couldn't think, couldn't do anything but kiss Draco Malfoy with everything she had. Every little piece of her heart was singing in joy at the completed feeling inside of her. She finally felt like everything in the world was perfect.

Draco couldn't think at all. The only thing he could do was finally allow himself to have this experience that he had been longing for since that dream. As the image of the dream returned, Draco growled hungrily beneath Hermione. With his arms still wrapped around her waist, he rolled them both over so that she was on her back, and he was above her in a plank-like position, still not daring to touch her too much. He continued kissing her until both of their lips were swollen and they were forced to come up for air.

They both gasped and their lungs eagerly took in fresh oxygen. Draco rolled onto his back and lay there staring at the ceiling until he saw a slim face surrounded by lush brown curls come into view. They just stared at each other, both still sucking in air like drowning victims, until Hermione opened her lips.

"So I guess this means that we're done pretending there's nothing between us?" she asked hesitantly, testing to see what his reaction would be.

Draco closed his eyes tightly, then opened them. "Yea. I guess so, Granger," he replied.

"Hermione," she said.

"Pardon?" he asked confusedly.

"My name. It's Hermione. If you're going to be snogging me senseless, we should probably be on a first-name basis," she answered matter-of-factly.

Draco thought about it for a minute, then nodded his agreement. "Hermione." He liked the way her name rolled off of his lips.

"Draco." She tested the name, almost like she would test a fine wine to see if it was to her liking. She judged that it was.

Draco exhaled again as a bright smile lit up her face. From his position on the floor, with her face above his, she looked like an angel gazing down at him, her curls like a halo around her head. He felt his lips curving of their own accord.

"You taught me how to be an animagus. Thank you, Mal… I mean, Draco," she whispered.

Draco sat up and looked at her, face to face. "You're welcome, Hermione," he replied.

The two sat in silence for a long while, thinking about what had just happened between them. The strange thing was that, with all of the emotions flooding through both of them at warp speed, neither one felt even an inkling of regret. Confusion, yes. Even a little bit of fear. But no regret.

"So what are we going to do about this now?" asked Hermione.

"I have no idea," Draco answered truthfully and thrust a long, pale hand through his white-blonde hair.

Hermione watched him as he ran his hand through his hair like Harry tended to do when he was stressed, and sighed. Now that reality was sinking in, none of what had just happened looked like it was going to be good. It had been so much easier when she could just pretend that she didn't feel anything for the beautiful Slytherin sitting before her but hatred. But now that they had both let out their repressed feelings, Hermione knew that nothing would be easy anymore. But she still didn't regret it.

Draco looked at Hermione's face and watched it fall. He didn't feel the need to ask her what was wrong, since he figured what was wrong with her was exactly the same thing that was wrong with him. Things would never be the same now. Draco shook his head and stood up. He offered a hand to Hermione and she took it. He then led her back over to the couch and they both sat down. They just sat there in silence for a little while, both lost in their own thoughts.

"Let me see your arm," whispered Hermione, breaking the silence.

Draco looked startled. "What?" he asked incredulously.

"Your arm. Let me see it," she responded with determination.

"Why?" he asked, eyeing her warily.

"Because I need to. I need to see your Mark, Draco." The look in her eyes was enough to tell him that she was sincere about that need, so he slowly lifted his left arm, palm up, and held it in front of her. Hermione hesitantly reached out and rolled up his sleeve. The look on Hermione's face wasn't the disgust and fear that he expected. The only thing that marred her pretty features was a look of grim amazement.

Slowly, Hermione lifted her hand to run her fingers over the snake-and-skull tattoo marring Draco's smooth, snowy flesh. She grazed her fingers over the Mark, which rocked Draco to his core. He had expected her to flinch away in fear, not caress the Mark like it was something soft and sweet.

Hermione looked up into Draco's surprised features and met his eyes. She stopped tracing the Mark on his arm and wrapped her fingers around it instead. "You're wondering why I'm not running away from you right now." It wasn't a question, but a statement. "I'm not running because this horrible Mark is not who you are. It may have been who you used to be, but not anymore. I knew you were different the second you walked into the Great Hall during the feast the day we got back here and almost let Ron and Harry kill you. I could see it in your eyes, Draco. What happened that changed you so much?" she whispered the question.

Draco shook his head and pulled his arm from her grip, gently. He set his hand on the couch but didn't bother covering the Mark again. There was no point in hiding it from her anymore. "You don't want to know what happened to me, Hermione," he replied, his eyes downcast.

Hermione placed a finger under his chin and raised his face back up to hers. "Yes, I do. Please tell me."

Draco almost shook his head again, but decided against it. Maybe if she knew the things he had done, she would run away like a smart little girl. Maybe then, things would go back to normal and they wouldn't have to face everything that had just happened. Even though he was thinking that, he knew it was half-heartedly. No matter how many times he told himself she wasn't what he wanted, he knew that he was lying, and even if she did decide to leave him and whatever messed-up relationship they were developing, he would never get over the strange feelings he had for this girl.

"Fine. The night I let all of the Death Eaters into the castle and Dumbledore died, Snape took me back to the Manor. The Dark Lord was there and so was my father. Neither one of them was happy with me for failing my mission. Lucky for me, Snape came to my rescue and stopped him from killing me. Instead, he decided it would be fun to toy with me.

"My father had me sent to the dungeons, where I was whipped daily for my worthlessness to the Dark Lord. My mum came in every night to try and heal me but my back didn't heal fully for weeks.

"Then one day, the Death Eaters threw a muggle girl in my cell with me and gave me a little time to get to know her before they forced me to take her life." Draco looked up into Hermione's eyes to measure her reaction to that last statement. She didn't look horrified like he expected, just sad. He continued, shocked at how strong she seemed to be.

"That was my final test to see if I was worthy of becoming a Death Eater. Apparently, I passed the test. The Dark Lord used my shock to his advantage, and branded me right there like a cow," Draco added darkly.

"After that, I was free to wander around the house and to sleep in my own bed. And I would have, if I had been able to sleep at all after that. But after that first killing, things just got worse. The Dark Lord decided to use me as executioner. Every time anyone stood in his way that he could get his hands on, he brought them back to the Manor and when they were on their hands and knees in front of him, begging forgiveness, he had me kill them. It got easier after a while. I realized it made it better if I just didn't think about it. I had to obey him or I would never have gotten away. He would have killed me if I didn't do as he'd ordered." Draco looked at her a little nervously, like he was afraid she was going to hate him for what he had done.

Hermione couldn't believe what she had just heard. Voldemort had forced DRACO, of all people, to be his executioner? Why? Was it just to mess with him? Hermione felt so horribly for the poor boy sitting before her. They had broken him. That was why he wasn't the same anymore. The things that had been done to him, and that he had been forced to do, had completely broken his spirit and changed him into a new person, one who was good. Hermione couldn't believe his strength. That after all of that, he still had the power to get up and walk away. That he had the courage to join the Light and be a double-agent. Hermione just stared in wonder at the blonde.

Hermione lifted her hand to Draco's cheek and he closed his eyes. It was obvious that he wasn't used to being touched, which made her think about the whippings he said he had been forced to endure. Her heart cried out for him. "You are one of the strongest, bravest people I have ever met, Draco. The fact that you could do all of those things and still have the courage to get up in the morning, let alone to come back to this school and change sides, proves how strong you are. I am so proud of you."

"I killed countless numbers of innocents, Hermione. Most of them, without a second thought. I did all of that to protect my own life. If I was really brave, I would have just said no and sacrificed myself, like bloody Potter would. But I didn't," Draco said angrily.

"No, Draco. That's not true. Harry is the way he is out of a ridiculous sense of obligation. He thinks he owes the world and that's why he's always putting himself in danger for everyone. I constantly worry that one day I'm going to wake up and my best friend will be dead and it's almost too much for me to handle. I don't know what I'd do if I had to worry about someone else like that too. I'm just so glad that you're here with me right now. Once Voldemort is dead, you will be free. You won't have to worry anymore. You're safe with us. You're safe with ME."

Draco looked up into her face again and Hermione could tell by his eyes how upset and angry he was. And he had every right to be. Hermione couldn't imagine having been put through everything that he had been put through. She didn't think that she would have been able to move on after that.

Hermione caressed his cheek again and leaned toward him to lay a hesitant kiss on his lips. It unnerved them both how willingly she touched him. He wasn't used to it, but for whatever reason, he wanted to GROW used to it. He didn't ever want to let her go now. It was too late for him when it came to Hermione Granger. And all of those things that he had held against her all of those years past seemed so stupid and insignificant to him now. All of his prejudices had been instilled in him from birth by his father and his father's Death Eater cohorts. None of those opinions had truly been his own and he hadn't realized that until this girl had imbedded herself in his life. Hermione had an unnerving way of breaking down Draco's walls without him even realizing it until it was too late to build them back up again. He didn't know what to think about it.

Draco thought, _Screw it,_ and pulled Hermione so that she was curled on his lap, with her head rested on his shoulder. He adjusted himself so that he was lying with his back against the armrest, so that he could cradle her small body against him. He whispered, "I'm sorry, Hermione. For everything I ever did to you. I was a stupid, ignorant prat back then and I hope that you can eventually forgive me for it."

Hermione looked up into his face, stunned that he would apologize. "You're already forgiven, Draco. Yes, you were a complete arse back then, but that is not the person you are now. You're brave and smart and caring, even though I get the feeling you would never admit it. I don't hold your past against you, Draco." Hermione smiled sweetly at him, then closed her eyes.

Before either of them knew it, they were both asleep.

.ooOoo.

Hermione awoke to the sun's warm rays streaming in through the windows and onto her face. She started when she felt something move beneath her and opened her eyes wide. When she saw Draco's face below her, eyes still closed and usually perfectly coifed hair mussed, she felt a little spark of excitement. She smiled and brushed the back of her fingers lightly across his smooth forehead.

Draco's eyes flew open and his hand was crushing her wrist so quickly she hadn't even seen him move.

"It's okay, Draco. It's just me," she whispered slightly fearfully at the wild fear that was in his eyes before it was taken over by recognition.

Draco immediately let go of Hermione's wrist when he realized who it was that had woken him. She looked down at it and rubbed it to soothe away the pain from his crushing grip. Draco immediately felt horrible and embarrassed. He gently took her arm in his hand and looked at the purple fingerprint-shaped bruises that were already beginning to form.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you not to wake a sleeping Death Eater," Draco scowled, still holding her arm gently. He pulled out his wand and muttered a healing spell and immediately, the painful bruises on Hermione's wrist were gone. Draco tenderly rubbed the spot with his thumb, and his scowl was replaced with a worried look, his silver gaze begging for forgiveness.

"You really aren't used to being touched, are you?" she asked softly, not angrily, but with genuine curiosity.

Draco just looked at her for a second. He didn't think he would ever get used to how strangely forgiving she was. "No. I'm not," he admitted.

"And the only touches you've ever felt were bad ones, weren't they?" she asked.

"For the most part. Or they were for the pleasure of the person doing the touching," Draco muttered, thinking about Pansy.

"Well, you probably should get used to me touching you. It will be rather frustrating for both of us if you keep tensing up when we graze each other or breaking my wrists when I wake you up in the morning…. Oh Merlin, what time is it?!" Hermione flew out of Draco's lap and rushed to pick up her wand from where it had fallen on the ground during her transformation the previous night.

Draco said the spell that would reveal the time. "8:06 AM," announced an airy voice from his wand.

"Shoot!" Hermione yelled and spun around to head toward the door. Draco grabbed her arm, effectively stopping her in her tracks.

"When can we meet again?" he asked. He took a step closer to her and brushed a hand through her unkempt curls.

"Umm… I don't know…," she whispered. Her mind was starting to fog up at his touch. She shook her head to clear it and brushed his hand away. "Just send me an owl and we'll plan something," she said a little more in control of herself.

"Tonight," Draco said and stepped toward her again, eyes smoldering. She took a step back and he continued following her until her back was pressed up against the wall.

"O..okay. Tonight," she whispered, transfixed by his heated, mercury gaze.

Draco nodded slightly, then his lips descended on hers. He caught her lips with his and kissed her hungrily for a few moments, then pulled away, turning his head to the side and inhaling deeply as if trying to gain control of himself.

"We should probably get to class," he whispered, taking a step back, either because of their mutual need to get to class, or to keep himself from throwing himself at her again, he wasn't sure which.

Draco's words seemed to clear Hermione's smoke-hazed mind and she hurried for the door. She turned her head slightly to gaze back at him and smiled at him before she rushed out the door.

Draco sighed heavily and leaned his forehead against the cool stone in front of him to clear the

haze taking up residence in his brain. That girl was so damned intoxicating and he never knew what was going to happen when she was around. Draco growled in frustration, then figured he should probably get to class too. His first class was Advanced Arithmancy with Hermione. Wouldn't that be interesting after they had just spent the night together?

Draco shook his head and headed out of the door and toward the dungeons. He still had to change and get ready for class.

.ooOoo.

When Hermione entered the common room she was startled by the commotion. Harry, Ron, and Ginny were all on their feet and in front of her in a split second and they were all yelling at once. Luckily, there was no one else in the common room to see this.

"Woah, woah, woah, guys. Stop yelling," Hermione begged, holding up her hands as if surrendering.

"Where in Merlin's name were you, Hermione?" boomed Ron. His face and neck were tinged pink from his frustration… or worry, Hermione didn't know which.

"Umm…." Hermione said, not knowing what lie she should tell them. She had no idea what to say. She looked toward Ginny with a pleading look in her eyes and watched as the realization slowly dawned in the redhead's eyes. They went wide and her lips formed an 'O' shape. She shook her head once, as if to snap herself out of it and turned toward the boys.

"We should let her get ready for class. We're all going to be late. We know she's safe now, so we can interrogate her later," Ginny said matter-of-factly.

Ron looked like he was going to argue, but he changed his mind when Harry smacked his arm and shook his head. "Leave it be, Ron. Ginny's right. We can talk to Hermione about it later, IF she doesn't run off again tonight," Harry said almost angrily. He then turned and pulled Ron out of the portrait hole. Ginny made it look as if she was going to follow after them, but the boys were storming away so fast they didn't realize when she whirled on Hermione instead.

"What the HELL were you thinking, Hermione?" Ginny yelled.

Hermione sighed in resignation. "If you're going to yell at me, can we at least go upstairs so I can get ready at the same time?" she asked dully.

Ginny looked like she was considering tearing into the brunette right there but thought better of it. She nodded stiffly. "Fine," she snapped, then headed for the staircase before Hermione had even started moving.

Hermione followed Ginny up to their unoccupied room and closed the door behind them.

"What the HELL were you thinking?" Ginny repeated, in the same tone as before.

"I wasn't, Gin. I wasn't planning on falling asleep. It just kind of happened. When I woke up I immediately rushed back down here. I'm sorry I worried you guys," she whispered with her head hung low.

Ginny exhaled heavily, as if trying to get her temper in check. "So do you want to explain yourself or should I just GUESS what the two of you did last night?" Ginny asked after she felt like she wouldn't explode at the girl.

"Wait a second. Ginny, we didn't DO anything. We just fell asleep. ACCIDENTALLY fell asleep. Draco…," Ginny's eyes widened at the use of the blonde's first name, but Hermione continued, "he taught me how to become an animagus because I couldn't master it with McGonagall. He brought me to the Room of Requirement so he could teach me that. That's all. And he did teach me, Ginny. I'm an animagus now!" Hermione couldn't hide the excitement from her voice, and to her surprise, Ginny smiled at her. Ginny then seemed to realize what her face was doing and snapped her lips back into a scowl.

"Well that's great for you, but what do you expect to tell Harry and Ron? They were worried sick about you, and because you had the Map, Harry couldn't find you to make sure you were safe. They both stayed up the entire night waiting for you to return, Hermione. You really scared them. You scared all of us," Ginny said disapprovingly.

"I'm sorry, Gin. I didn't mean to. I would never have done that on purpose and you guys know that," Hermione replied.

"I know. That's why it scared us so much. You're not the kind of person that stays out all night of your own accord. Harry was worried that the Death Eaters got into the castle again and found you. He's got a wild imagination, but place him and Ron in the same room together and their anxious personalities bubble up so much energy that it makes everyone around them nervous too…"

Ginny trailed off, not knowing what to say next. She was just turning around and heading toward the door when Hermione whispered, "Draco kissed me."

Ginny whirled around so fast her hair smacked her in her eye. "Ow," she muttered, then got it together and forgot about the stinging. "Merlin, Hermione. How did it happen? What did you do?... How was it?" she asked.

Hermione laughed, knowing the redhead was hooked now, and turned toward her wardrobe to start getting ready. "Well it happened after he taught me how to turn into my animagus form, a black panther. I got this insane urge to pounce on him, so I did it. It's a lot harder to control yourself when you get an urge in animal form. I landed on his chest on the ground and the look in his eyes startled me so much I turned back into a human. Next thing I knew, he was kissing me. And what do you THINK I did? Of course I kissed him back! And he was bloody fantastic!" Hermione blurted uncharacteristically, then covered her mouth as her cheeks got hot.

Ginny burst into laughter at her best friend's outburst. "Well of course he was bloody fantastic, Hermione. Just look at him! He just oozes kissing prowess," she teased, waggling her fire-engine red eyebrows.

Hermione thwacked her on the arm and shook her head, choosing not to dignify that statement with a response, and continued getting dressed. Ginny laughed. When Hermione was finished they flew down the staircase to the common room and out the portrait hole together. When they reached the hallway leading to their classrooms, they parted ways and sprinted to their separate classes.

**So what did you think? I just love my Draco so much and I'm quite jealous that I'm not Hermione at the moment. Haha. So what will happen next? How will their relationship evolve from here? Will they both end up regretting their decisions and go back to ignoring their feelings, or will they keep it together and grow closer as time passes? I dunno… Haha. Don't hate me. I'll be posting another chapter as soon as I can. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated (and sometimes even make me post faster. ;] ) Thanks!**

**Love, MBS**


	10. Chapter 10

**I know, I know. This chapter took FOREVER for me to post and I'm sorry. *Ducks as rotten vegetables and a random shoe fly over her head* But I've just been crazy busy with school and work and other things that I haven't had time to spend on my little story. But I've just started writing again and I'm super excited about that. I lost my drive for a little while there, but it seems to be back. *crosses fingers and knocks on wood* Hopefully. Well, here ya go… I hope you like it. Some more questions are brought up in this chapter that will be answered later. You know I'm one for the whole 'keep you on the edge of your seats' thing. Haha. **

**CHAPTER 10:**

When Hermione reached her Arithmancy classroom and flew through the door, winded and unkempt, every eye was on her. She could feel her face heating up and rushed to her seat with her head down, vaguely registering that Draco had somehow made it to the class on time.

"Miss Granger. I'm so glad that you decided to grace us with your presence. Would you like to share with us all why you are late?" Professor Vector asked slightly scornfully.

"Umm… My alarm didn't go off this morning?" Hermione answered, her face heating up so much that she was surprised the temperature in the room didn't increase by a few degrees.

Professor Vector just eyed her for a couple seconds. "Very well then. Five points from Gryffindor. Maybe you'll be more punctual next time." She said, then continued on with her lesson about the magical capabilities of even numbers versus odd numbers.

Hermione sighed wearily. All-in-all, she was surprised she'd gotten off so easily, although she attributed it partially to the fact that she was the professor's favorite student and was usually early to class every day. She pulled her books out of her bag and started taking notes like the rest of the class, though she felt Draco's eyes on her the whole time.

"So where were you really?" whispered Alan from his seat next to her.

"My alarm didn't go off this morning," she repeated.

Alan cocked an eyebrow at her, trying to determine if she was telling the truth or not. Whatever his conclusion was, he dropped it and moved on to a different topic…

"So you never answered me about attending the ball with me," he stated, making Hermione wish that he had just kept interrogating her about where she had been that morning.

"Umm, yea. Sorry, Alan, but I can't," she whispered and looked at him apologetically.

Alan's eyes narrowed and he said, "Why not?"

Hermione had to come up with an excuse, and fast. She blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "Someone's already asked me."

Alan just kept looking at her and he whispered, "Oh. Okay. Who asked you?"

"Oh. A bloke from Hufflepuff. He heard about the ball early, too, and asked me," she lied, then immediately went back to taking notes.

Alan didn't say anything more after that, but Hermione heard a cough from behind her and knew that Draco was trying to cover up a laugh. Hermione just turned pink and continued staring at her paper. When the bell rang, she took her time packing her things, and ended up being the last one to leave the room.

When Hermione rounded a corner in the deserted hallway on her way to the next class, she let out a squeal when she felt a strong hand grab her arm and pull her into an alcove.

"Shhhh...," Draco whispered, covering her mouth with his hand. "It's just me."

Hermione shoved his hand away from her mouth when she realized who it was.

"And what in Merlin's name do you think you're doing dragging me into a dark corner and scaring the wits out of me?" she demanded.

Draco smirked as he leaned back against the wall, ankles and arms crossed. A stray piece of blonde hair fell into his eyes, and Hermione wanted to brush it away. She registered that Draco looked very Slytherin at the moment, and she didn't know why she found that so damned alluring. Hermione shook her head. She figured her brain must be failing her.

"Just wanted to talk. You never told ME that some Hufflepuff bloke was taking you to the ball," Draco teased, smirk still firmly in place, and looking cockier every second.

Hermione just huffed at him. "Well what else was I supposed to tell him, huh?"

"Oh, I don't know… Maybe, 'I think you're a twit and I would never go to the ball with you, even if you got down on your hands and knees and begged me to'?" Draco laughed.

Hermione rolled her eyes and was in the process of turning around and leaving the alcove when Draco grabbed her arm again and spun her around. When Hermione collided with his hard chest, she was surprised. He DEFINITELY had not been that close a moment ago. The strangely Lavender-sounding voice in the back of her head was noticing just how hard and muscular his chest was. _Must be the fact that he's a seeker. Merlin, do they train those boys nicely or what?_ Hermione told that voice to shut up.

Her internal monologue was cut short when she looked up into Draco's eyes. The twinkling silver from a moment ago, when he was teasing her, had now been completely replaced with a dark, steel grey. Hermione was starting to feel like a rabbit looking a wolf in the face.

"So do you really have a Hufflepuff date to the ball, Hermione?" Draco purred low in his throat, already knowing the answer, but wanting to hear it from her.

"Of course not," she murmured, unable to pull her eyes away from his.

"Good answer," he growled a second before his lips crushed hers. Hermione's surprise wore away very quickly, replaced with a hunger to make the kiss last for the rest of her life. _God, where's that time-turner when it's really useful?,_ she thought, blissfully.

Before she knew it, Draco's mouth was gone and Hermione's lips were feeling cold, like something very important had been lost to them. She looked up at Draco and forgot all about the loss, too thrilled by the fire burning deep in his beautiful cloudy eyes. It was obvious he was fighting with himself, and it made Hermione feel uncharacteristically giddy that she could have that affect on him.

"So what would you do if I really DID have a Hufflepuff date to the ball?" she teased after he'd gained a little bit more control.

"I would have to show him his place. Maybe lock him in a broom closet for a week or two," Draco replied, and Hermione could tell that he wasn't entirely joking. She found that slightly humourous.

"Unfortunately, I'm going to have to end this now, because we both need to get to class," Hermione said.

"Yes. It appears we do," Draco whispered, a little disappointedly. "But don't forget, we're meeting tonight."

"How could I forget that, Draco?" she replied. "But this time we need to be sure that we get back to our rooms before tomorrow morning. Harry and Ron almost killed me this morning when I came in. I guess I really scared them," she whispered, feeling awful about scaring her friends.

Draco didn't know how to reply, not caring one iota what Potter and the Weasel thought about anything, but figuring he shouldn't say as much to her, so he just said, "Don't worry about it. You'll be back before they even know you're missing." Draco smirked again, then spun around and sauntered out of the alcove.

Hermione stood in the alcove for another couple seconds. She sighed, thinking, _How could he have such an effect on me? I'm going to have to ask Dumbledore if he did anything more than just connect our minds… _Then she remembered that she had to ask Dumbledore about the full extent of that connection too. _I'm going to need to schedule an appointment with McGonagall to see if I can speak with Dumbledore alone._

Hermione then left the alcove and headed to Advanced Ancient Runes, the only class she had without Harry, Ron, OR Draco.

.ooOoo.

Hermione found her uncharacteristically giddy mood continuing throughout the whole rest of the day. It didn't escape Harry and Ron's notice, either, especially when she entered their Advanced Charms class with a massive Cheshire cat grin plastered on her pretty face. She couldn't get over the feelings of happiness that washed over her like ocean waves during high tide whenever she thought of the stolen hallway kiss.

Hermione knew that she and Draco were taking a really big risk putting themselves out there like that, but she found it very difficult to care. _But I have to care,_ thought Hermione. _We have to be more careful so as to not spark suspicion in any of the Slytherins. We can't have Voldemort knowing what's going on. _That thought wiped the smile off of her face for a minute or so, until she thought of the previous night and how amazing it had been to wake up in Draco's arms.

_What is going on with me? I would almost think that he dosed me with a love potion or something. _Hermione shook that thought off, knowing enough about love potions to realize that the dizzy feeling she got when she was so close to Draco was genuine.

After Advanced Charms, Hermione had Advanced Transfiguration, DADA, and Potions, all with Harry, Ron, AND Draco. Hermione found it very very hard to focus when Draco was so near to her. She could feel his eyes watching her and every once in a while, when no one was looking, she would look back at him and give him a knowing smile, one that said, 'I can't wait until we get away from everyone so we can stop pretending to hate each other.' He replied by returning her smile, upturning one corner of his perfect lips, so that anyone who might be looking would think he was smirking at her, but Hermione could easily tell the difference now.

After her last class of the day, Advanced Potions with Professor Slughorn, Harry, Ron, and Hermione exited the dank classroom in the dungeons and stood outside talking.

"Hey guys, I think I'm going to go talk to Professor McGonagall for a bit. I'll meet you up in the tower in a little while, okay?" Hermione asked.

Ron and Harry just looked at her in confusion.

"Why do you need to see her?" asked Harry, still kind of angry with her over this morning's events. Hermione felt truly sorry that she had scared them so bad, but she knew she couldn't tell them the truth no matter how badly she wanted to.

"Oh, I just need to ask her some things about the NEWTs…" she replied, lying through her no-longer bucked teeth.

Wanting to avoid any and all talk about the horrible tests they would have to take at the end of this year (if they were still at the school, and not searching the world for the horcruxes), Ron quickly said, "Oh, alright then. We'll see you later."

Before Harry or Ron could walk away, Draco and his cronies walked out of the classroom.

"Watch it, Mudblood," Draco purred into Hermione's ear with none of the malice that should have been associated with the word, as he shoved his shoulder into her lightly. She knew that he was just keeping up his Slytherin Prince façade, so she didn't take his words to heart, and instead decided to play along.

"You watch it, ferret boy, or should I remind you just what it feels like to be shoved down Crabbe's trousers?" she threatened, trying to put a sneer on her face, but doubting she was succeeding very well. Crabbe was sputtering and turning red from the humiliating memory she had just dredged up in his thick skull.

Draco looked surprised at her comeback for a second. He threw her a pretend glare, then turned on his heel and walked off with his posse. Pansy turned and sneered at Hermione and Hermione returned the look, this time not having a problem giving the look for real. Merlin, how she hated the ugly little pug-faced girl.

When Hermione turned to look at Ron and Harry, they both were grinning at her. It was obvious that they were no longer angry with her, though she was kind of surprised at how easy it had been to win them over again.

"That was great, 'Mione," Ron laughed, slamming his Neanderthal-sized hand into her shoulder, nearly sending her sprawling. Hermione winced, thinking that Ron's hit had been harder than Draco's had been when he'd shoved his shoulder into her.

"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to hit you so hard," he said, looking sheepish. It was a look Hermione was getting used to seeing on the red-head's freckled face.

"It's alright, Ron," she replied, rubbing her shoulder, but smiling at him. "Well, I need to get going, but I'll see you two later."

"See you," Harry and Ron replied at the same time. Then the trio went their separate ways, Harry and Ron to Gryffindor Tower, and Hermione to the headmistress's office.

When Hermione reached the statue of the gargoyle, she realized that she hadn't set up an appointment ahead of time, so she didn't know for sure what the password was. She muttered the same one she had used the night they were trained to be animaguses ("Canary Creams"), and the gargoyle happily jumped aside, revealing the moving stone staircase. Hermione silently thanked God for small favors, then stepped onto the staircase.

When Hermione reached the top, she knocked hard on the door and crossed her fingers, hoping that McGonagall was there. After a few seconds she heard a muffled, "Come in!" from inside and opened the door.

Professor McGonagall was rushing around in her bedroom off the main office, and looked up at Hermione, flustered.

"Oh, hello Miss Granger. What can I do for you? I'm sorry to say that I can't talk for long. I've got a meeting downstairs in my classroom in five minutes."

"Oh that's okay, Professor. I was actually coming up here to see if I could speak to Professor Dumbledore," Hermione said, gesturing to the portrait of the jovial-looking professor.

McGonagall stopped gathering things, looked like she was contemplating Hermione's request, then pursed her thin lips and said, "I don't see why not. Yes, you may stay up here and speak to him," she replied with a curt nod. "I won't be back for a while so you feel free to stay as long as you wish." The usually grim professor smiled at Hermione, then grabbed her briefcase-like bag and headed out the door.

Hermione sighed in relief, then walked over to Dumbledore's portrait.

"Hello, my dear Miss Granger. How are you today? Pull up a seat so we may chat at eye level," Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his baby blue eyes.

"I'm doing well, thank you. How about yourself?" she asked as she dragged one of the heavy dragon-skin chairs over from in front of McGonagall's desk to the portrait.

"Oh, I'm doing very well myself, thank you for asking. Though I don't know how you couldn't do well, being a portrait." The wiry old professor looked like he was genuinely contemplating the concept and wasn't being patronizing in the least. Hermione smiled.

Dumbledore seemed to snap out of his daze, then gazed at her with knowing eyes. "So what brings you up here to speak to me, Hermione?" he asked, though Hermione got the feeling he already knew.

"I needed to speak to you about the mind connection you placed on Draco and myself, Professor. I need to know what more it entails. You see, Draco and I have been having very… abnormal… reactions toward one another and I didn't know if that was a side effect of the spell or not…" Hermione trailed off.

The professor smiled at her. "And do you want to share with me what these feelings are, my dear?" he asked gently.

Hermione flushed pink. "Umm… well, they're… errr… romantic in nature, Professor."

The twinkling got more intense. "I see… Well I'm afraid to say that that kind of feeling is not a side effect of any spell the human me placed on you two. I do believe that those feelings have been hidden inside of you all along, and that being forced to be near each other on a regular basis has brought them out of hiding."

Hermione was surprised. She was certain that these feelings had developed way too quickly to be natural. "Okay… and I wanted to ask you some more things about this mind connection. What did you mean when you said, 'I hope that now you will explore the extent of your minds' connection and use it against Voldemort. You both have more power than you know.'?"

The twinkling continued. "Now that is the real question, isn't it my dear? I'm afraid I cannot explain it, though. That is something you and Mr. Malfoy need to figure out on your own," Dumbledore replied, smiling his 'all-knowing' smile.

Hermione wanted to argue with him, tell him that he was being ridiculous, but deep down she knew that the professor was always right when it came to things like this. She knew in her heart that it was important for her to listen to him. "Yes, Professor," she replied dejectedly.

"Oh, come now, Hermione. I know you can figure all of this out. You're the brightest witch of your age for a reason, my dear. You and Mr. Malfoy will make a powerful pair when you learn the true extent of your connection. There's no doubt in my mind that you two will solve this mystery together. As my dear friend Elias Cunningham used to say, 'When two minds are connected to their full extent, nothing in this world can separate them…'" Dumbledore said, and Hermione could have sworn she saw the twinkling get more intense, though she just wrote it off as a figment of her overactive imagination.

"Thank you, Professor. And it was very nice to speak with you again after so long," she whispered honestly. She truly missed the crazy old man, but she was very glad to have his portrait there for her to speak to when she needed to, even though it wasn't the same. She smiled softly at him and he returned the smile.

"Now I do believe that you have some work to do my dear. I know you'll make me proud. You will figure it out. Don't get disheartened," he advised.

"Yes, Professor," Hermione replied, then got up, pushed the chair back to its original spot, and headed to the heavy door. As she was leaving, she waved goodbye to the old headmaster, but his portrait was empty again. Hermione sighed, walked down the stairs, then headed back to the common room, feeling rather drained after the meeting that hadn't gotten her anywhere. Or so she thought.

.ooOoo.

"So I went to see Dumbledore's portrait today…" Hermione trailed off into Draco's chest. They were laying on the couch in the same room the Room of Requirement had morphed into the previous night, Draco absentmindedly tracing tiny circles on Hermione's spine. Draco was laying on his back, one arm tossed casually behind his head like a pillow, and staring at the ceiling. Hermione was laying with her head on his chest, her body flush against his side. She was extremely comfortable there and she was pretty surprised about that.

"Oh yea? And what did you find out?" Draco asked, slightly curious but mostly just humoring her. He found it difficult to worry about anything with Hermione curled up against him like she was.

Hermione sighed. "Not a whole lot. He mostly just spoke in riddles. I went to see if he would tell me what he meant about the 'full extent of our minds connections'," she mimicked Dumbledore's voice, "from his letter."

"What did he say?" Draco asked, his interest perking up. He stopped the circles and looked down into the top of her head.

"He said that he couldn't tell me," Hermione stated with a sigh. "He said that we would have to figure it out on our own and that he had no doubt that we would be able to. He also said that we would be very powerful when we did figure it all out. Then he quoted one of his friends, saying that when our minds are fully connected, nothing will be able to separate us." She whispered the last part, looking up to meet his stormy eyes.

Draco didn't know what to think, but felt a tremor of… something. He just wished the old fool would be straightforward for once.

"So I guess that means we need to start researching this. Where do you think we should start?" Draco asked.

At the mention of research, Hermione perked up a little bit more. "Well, we should probably go to the library soon and look for books on mind connections or something," she suggested.

"Yea. I guess you're right," Draco nodded once, then went back to tracing his fingers in circles around her back. Hermione sighed in contentment, laying her head back down on his chest. The two stayed cuddled up like that for a couple more hours.

.ooOoo.

When Hermione stood in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, she still had a dazed look of happiness on her features. Before she had left the Room of Requirement, Draco had stopped her from walking out by snagging her thin wrist in his large hand and spun her around. The kiss he'd planted on her lips had taken her breath away completely. When she'd felt like she was going to die in complete bliss, he'd released her, given her a heated look that took away the rest of the air she didn't know about, and left the room. Hermione'd had to lean against the wall to gain her composure again before she could convince herself she was strong enough to leave the room.

"Have a nice, romantic evening out?" the Fat Lady asked nosily, always dying for a piece of new gossip to spread around throughout the rest of the portraits.

"Ergh… phoenix feathers," Hermione just muttered the password, not wanting to be the butt of gossip for the rest of the week. The Fat Lady just grumbled at Hermione's avoidance, but opened anyway.

When Hermione got inside the common room, she noticed that Harry and Ginny were playing a game of exploding snap, and by the look of things, Ginny was winning. Harry's eyebrows were singed and he had black soot marks on his face, but he was laughing with Ginny, so Hermione knew everything was just fine.

Hermione's eyes trailed over to the couches in front of the fireplace, but what she saw made her snap her eyes away violently, resisting the urge to gag. Lavender was straddling Ron on the couch and had her tongue shoved so far down his throat Hermione was surprised he could still manage to breathe. Hermione silently thanked God that the two were still fully clothed (and obviously back together again, at least in the physical aspect. Hermione was sure Ron learned his lesson about being the crazy bint's boyfriend after their breakup the previous year), but she was still thoroughly disgusted. She shook her head and walked toward Ginny and Harry, keeping her eyes as fixed far away from the two on the couch as possible.

Harry looked up when he heard Hermione's footsteps coming toward him. He had a goofy grin on his face and it made Hermione extremely happy. She had a hunch that things were going to get repaired between Harry and Ginny pretty soon.

"Hey, 'Mione. Where did you run off to?" asked Harry, postponing the game for a minute.

"Oh, nowhere," Hermione lied, blushing madly.

"That's codswallop and you know it," Harry replied, but he was still in a good mood, so he wasn't too frustrated with her. "I bet you were meeting with some bloke and you just don't want to admit it," he teased.

From the corner of the room that Hermione had vowed not to look over at, Ron's voice could be heard.

"Wha? Hermione was meeting some bloke?" Ron joined in the teasing, but there was something else underlying it that Hermione couldn't identify.

"Oh come off it boys. She was probably just in the library doing some extra studying, right Hermione?" asked Ginny, deliberately taking the attention away from the possibility of Hermione being out with an unknown member of the opposite sex. It was obvious that Ginny's words immediately worked. The two boys wanted absolutely nothing to do with Hermione's psychotic study habits.

There was a muffled "Oomf!" heard from the couch, signaling that Lavender had gotten fed up with the conversation and had attacked Ron's lips again. Harry just looked back at the cards in his hands.

"Yea. I was in the library. And now I'm really tired so I'm going up to bed. Goodnight," Hermione stated, then mouthed 'Thank you' to Ginny behind Harry's back and headed up to her room. She really was tired, but mostly she just wanted to lay in bed and think about her night with Draco.

Hermione had absolutely no idea how this had all happened so quickly but she wasn't objecting in the least, anymore. She loved his company too much. She loved how they could spend hours talking about trivial things (they were still timidly avoiding the bigger, tougher subjects, like the fact that she was a muggleborn and he was a Death Eater), but she didn't mind it for now. Mostly she loved how Draco was on the same level as her intellectually. She didn't have to speak in little words for him or get on his case about schoolwork. Not that he would ever allow her to be on his case about anything. Draco may have changed sides and lost his hostility, but he was still Draco Malfoy on the inside, and Draco Malfoy didn't take crap from anyone.

The fact that Draco had kept all of the things that shaped who he was, essentially, while losing all of the bad things that had been planted in him by his upbringing, made Hermione smile, and she fell asleep with images of Draco's slow smile and bright mercury eyes dancing through her mind.

**Soooo…. What did you think? It was slightly a filler chapter, but the whole scene with Dumbledore is very important. Silly old wizard and his riddles. Don't worry. Some of them will be answered in the next couple chapters. So you all know how it goes. Review, review, review. Keep me motivated, guys. I don't want to lose this muse again. Keep feeding it and showing it love and hopefully it will keep turning out chapters. Haha. Thank you all for the awesome reviews I've already gotten. You guys are amazing. Thanks!**


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm finally posting another one! It's been so long, but I finally found some time to write some more because it's spring break right now. I hope you like this one. It's a little more of a short introductory chapter but I still love it. I hope you do too…**

**CHAPTER 11:**

The next couple months flew by for the whole student body of Hogwarts. It seemed like the professors had all gathered together and plotted to assign as much homework as possible, especially for the seventh years. Hermione spent eighty percent of her time studying for her NEWTS, and the other twenty percent researching her mind connection in the library with Draco. They hadn't found anything promising as of yet, and they were starting to doubt they ever would. It was only Dumbledore's words from their meeting that stopped her from giving up all together. "Don't get disheartened…"

The only time Hermione ever got to go visit with Draco in their Room of Requirement was after 10:00 at night on the nights neither of them were completely swamped with homework (which wasn't very often). She knew her friends were getting more and more suspicious of her, but she made sure to always be back in the common room by midnight. She never wanted to relive their freak out again. No matter how hard the two boys had pressed (and that was pretty dang hard), she'd refused to tell them where she'd been. They eventually just stopped asking her, knowing that wouldn't get them anywhere, but would still shoot her accusing looks whenever she entered the common room, flushed and smiling after her meetings with Draco.

Draco continued meeting with McGonagall every Monday after classes and they would discuss how to keep him safe, while still allowing him to be a double-agent. They knew he couldn't completely walk away from Voldemort because then the Dark Lord would go after him and his family. Draco refused to sacrifice his family, his mother because he loved her, and his father because…well… he was his father, and if anyone was going to kill him, it would be Draco. Things were getting increasingly complicated with Draco's whole Death Eater situation, because he'd heard from Snape (whom he'd found out was also a double-agent) that Voldemort was planning something big, and it was going to happen sooner rather than later.

The whole school had been completely shocked one night at the end of November when, at dinner, McGonagall had stood up and announced that there would be a Costume Yule Ball held for the sixth and seventh years on December 18th, the Friday before they all left to go home for the holidays. Every single female (and a small amount of the males, namely Neville Longbottom) in the Great Hall had erupted into applause and loud whoops of excitement, while groaning could be heard from the majority of the males.

Hermione had looked over and briefly caught Draco's eyes. He was completely expressionless and was trying hard to ignore Pansy, who had latched herself onto his arm and was talking animatedly into his ear. Hermione could see the anger burning in Draco's eyes as he tugged his arm away from Pansy roughly, and that fire nearly matched the one that flared up in her whenever she saw Pansy touch him. Hermione was truly shocked that she felt such insane jealousy over it when it was completely obvious to anyone with eyes and half a brain that Draco hated the little sniveling idiot.

Hermione's attention had been drawn back to the Gryffindor table when Ginny had kicked her painfully under the table. Ginny raised her eyebrows as if to say, 'Hellooo! Could you make it any more obvious that you're staring at Malfoy in a less-than-enemy-like way?' Hermione winced, rubbing her shin, then nodded to Ginny to say that she understood. Ginny just shook her head and shifted her attention to Ron, who had gone bright red, knowing that now he would have to ask Lavender to go with him to a dance. Harry just patted Ron's shoulder in an 'I feel your pain, mate' kind of way.

Hermione immediately started thinking about what she was going to do about her whole date situation now that the plans for the ball had been finalized, and she started feeling a little bit of dread. She had no idea how she was going to pull this whole thing off when Alan would for sure be watching her to see if she really had a date. Suddenly, Hermione was starting to feel sick. She excused herself from her table and got up to leave, telling her friends that she just overate and her stomach was upsetting her.

As Hermione walked back up to her room in Gryffindor Tower, she pondered how she would get herself out of this one. It was obvious that Ron and Harry were going to have dates already, so she couldn't just take one of them and force them to wear a hooded mask or anything. Maybe she would be able to convince one of the Hufflepuff boys to go with her so that she wouldn't have been completely lying to Alan. Then she realized how ridiculous that was, not to mention the fact that she had zero interest in taking any Hufflepuff to the ball. She sighed when she thought about the fact that the man she really wanted to go with would NEVER be able to be her date anywhere even remotely public.

It didn't take much time for the whole school to get caught up in the preparations for the ball and Hermione quickly pushed her date worries to the back of her mind. Ginny's excitement had been so infectious that Hermione started to feel excited whenever she thought about it too.

That excitement multiplied tenfold when Ginny had burst into their room one night, flushed and grinning from ear to ear. "Harry asked me, 'Mione! Harry asked me to the Ball! Merlin, I didn't think he would and then he cornered me downstairs and asked me!" Ginny twirled around, head lifted towards the ceiling, then fell, arms outstretched, onto Hermione's bed next to her.

Hermione'd been startled when the redhead had come blasting through the door like a tornado on fire, but she was so incredibly excited for her friend. "Oh, Gin, that's wonderful!" she had exclaimed, throwing her arms around the excited freckle-faced girl that was now sitting up on her bed. "I'm so happy for you!" Ginny had hugged her back.

"But wait… Hermione, do you have a date?" Ginny had asked her.

"Ummm… no. No one's asked me, but it's not a big deal. It's not like there's anyone I'd want to go with besides Draco anyways…" Hermione'd said, looking down and picking at her comforter.

"Oh 'Mione. I know it's got to be hard for you, but you shouldn't give up on getting a date. I'm sure Seamus or Dean would love to go with you," she suggested.

Hermione laughed out loud at the thought of going to the Ball with either Seamus Finnegan or Dean Thomas, the rowdy best friends and roommates of Ron and Harry. "No, Ginny. Just… no," she laughed.

"Why not?" Ginny asked defensively. "I dated Dean once."

"I'm sorry, Ginny, but my tastes run more toward certain blonde-haired, grey-eyed, brooding Slytherins," she laughed.

Ginny looked disappointed, but nodded. "I guess you're right. I wouldn't be able to go back to plain, ordinary water after having tasted delicious, sparkling champagne either." Ginny smiled, then nudged Hermione's arm teasingly.

Hermione laughed again, though she was starting to feel the sadness at not being able to go to the Ball with Draco return.

.ooOoo.

On their next Hogsmeade weekend, Ginny, Luna, Parvati, Lavender, and Hermione all decided to go look for their costumes together. Hermione came up with the idea that all of the girls go as Disney characters. All but Parvati knew about the Disney movies, either because they were muggleborns or half-bloods (like Hermione, Luna, and Lavender) or because their father was obsessed with everything muggle and decided to introduce his daughter to the Disney princess phenomena (Ginny).

Hermione decided to go as Cinderella, since Cinderella had been her favorite fairy tale when she was growing up. When she was little, she would dance around her parents' living room with her arms around an invisible Prince Charming, humming along with the songs in the movie. Hermione thought it would be fun to be able to look like a real princess for a night.

When Hermione brought up the idea to the girls (and it had been explained to Parvati, the only pureblood in the group that didn't know about it) they loved it immediately, and started discussing who each should go as. Hermione claimed Cinderella before anyone else had even opened their mouths.

"Oh! I want to be Tinkerbell! I know exactly what I'm going to do for my costume, too. Ron's jaw is going to fall of his face when he sees me.," Lavender said with a predatory gleam in her ocean-blue eyes.

"I think I want to be Ariel. I always loved that character and my hair is perfect for her. Plus, I can enchant a mermaid costume to make it look like my fin is moving!" Ginny squealed.

"Ooh! Great idea, Ginny. I'll enchant my wings, too. Make them flutter and spread fairy dust around when I walk! This is so exciting!" added Lavender. The two overly-excited girls clasped hands, squealing, and proceeded to jump around in a circle.

Hermione rolled her eyes lovingly at the redhead, then looked over at Luna, who was deeply lost in thought, stroking her chin thoughtfully (yes, she was actually stroking her chin), with her owlish blue eyes gazing at the sky.

"I think I would like to go as Alice from Alice in Wonderland," she said in her tinkling voice.

"That would be great for you, Luna," Hermione said with a smile. The whimsical girl smiled back, then pulled out the latest copy of The Quibbler from the back pocket of her khaki, knee-length skirt, and began to read it upside-down intently.

"Who should I be?" asked Parvati, looking bewilderedly at Hermione, Lavender, and Ginny (who'd finally stopped squealing like the excited schoolgirls they were). The three girls looked at each other, then back to Parvati and said in unison, "Jasmine."

"And who's Jasmine?" asked Parvati, feeling a bit flustered at not knowing just what her costume was going to look like.

Hermione explained, "She's the Arabian princess from the movie Aladdin and she's really pretty. Your hair is just long enough to do it the way she does in the movie, with blue ribbons weaved through it. And she wears… actually, it would just be easier if you saw what she looks like with your costume. If you don't like it, you can always choose to be something else."

"Now we've just got to go find some costumes that work. We'll have to put them together ourselves, I'm guessing, since I highly doubt any wizarding costume shop is going to sell costumes of muggle movie characters," said Lavender, excited by the prospect of letting her creative genius flow in the subject she was best at, fashion. "Let's go see what we can find."

Hermione already had a pretty good idea what she wanted her dress to look like. The original Cinderella-style dress was a little bit too old-fashioned for her taste so she decided to make some mental alterations to it. For instance, she knew she didn't want big poufy sleeves or those fabric poufs on her hips. And she didn't want to wear gloves. She knew she wanted her dress to still poof out at the bottom, though, and she definitely wanted her glass slippers if she could find some.

The five girls practically ran from store to store finding the essentials for their costumes. They knew that they could charm some of their own things to fit their costumes if necessary, if they couldn't find exactly what they were looking for. By the time 1:00 rolled around, the girls were thoroughly exhausted, though they were having the time of their lives. They had already found most of the things they needed, but Hermione was still in need of some glass slippers, though she doubted she would find any.

"Whoo, 'Mione, we're getting starved over here. I think we should go find someplace to eat before we head back to the castle. We've gotten pretty much everything we need," Ginny said, winded.

"Okay. Yea, let's go find someplace to eat. Food does sound good right now," replied Hermione.

The five girls all headed to one of the cafes on a side street by Honeydukes.

**Like I said… short intro chapter. But I hope you guys liked it anyways. I decided to post the next chapter too so you guys weren't left waiting for the chapter this one's introducing. The story picks up more in the next chapter. As always, I would greatly appreciate a little love in my review board. My muse is starting to feel a little down on itself. Show it some love and inspire it by reviewing. Thank you guys so much. **

**Much Love,**

**MBS**


	12. Chapter 12

**Since I've waited so long to post again, I figured I would post 2 chapters this time as a reward for your guys' patience. The last chapter was kind of slow, but it was an introduction to this one, which is much faster. It's Ball time! What's going to happen there? Will Hermione end up finding someone to take her? What's Draco going to do? Read and find out…**

**CHAPTER 12:**

The next week flew by and before Hermione knew it, it was Friday again. The Ball was merely a week away, and holiday decorations were hung all over the castle.

Even after two months of Hermione and Draco's secret meetings and blossoming romance (if that was what it could be called, though Hermione personally thought it was a bit more complicated than that), they hadn't come any closer to discovering 'the extent of their minds' connection', or really even the beginning of it.

Sitting at her table at lunch Saturday morning, Hermione began contemplating this issue. She realized that the two of them had been using every excuse they could to put it off. _But we need to figure this out soon. No more putting it off, _she thought to herself. Hermione looked up from her plate of sausage and biscuits in front of her and locked her chocolate eyes with a pair of steely grey ones. Without speaking, she flicked her eyes to the door, signaling that she needed to talk. Draco responded with a nearly imperceptible nod.

Hermione glanced around to make sure no one had noticed their short exchange and wasn't surprised when no one was looking at her. She figured that everyone was too caught up in the energy of the coming holiday and ball to pay attention to anything else. Hermione looked at Ron and Harry, who were both in the process of shoveling as much food as physically possible into their mouths while having a very intense (if Ron's grand arm gestures were anything to go by) conversation about quidditch.

"Hey guys, I've got to head out. I've got some homework I need to get started on. It's due 2 weeks from now and I'm getting a little behind," Hermione stated, knowing full well that neither of the boys would argue with her leaving to do homework.

"Okay, 'Mione. We'll see you later," Harry mumbled through the food in his mouth, and attempted to smile at her without letting it fall out of his mouth and onto his plate.

Hermione giggled at him. She really did love her boys. Then she got up and headed out of the Great Hall, down an abandoned hallway, and into the hidden alcove that she and Draco had adopted as their own secret meeting place. They came to this place whenever they needed to talk and were afraid someone might see. Five minutes later, Draco joined her.

"What's wrong?" he demanded, confusion furrowing his blonde brows.

"Nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about Dumbledore's letter again and I think we really need to start searching harder for information on our mind-connection. I don't want to put it off too long and have it be too late," she replied, imploring him with her eyes.

Draco looked like he was about to object for a second before he thought better of it and nodded his agreement. "I should have known we couldn't live in this screwed up fairy tale for much longer. Now the real work starts," he said half-jokingly so that Hermione would know he wasn't upset.

"Yea," she replied with a small smile on her lips.

"How about we meet tonight in the library at 11? We can look some more then," Draco suggested.

Hermione quickly scanned over her schedule in her head and replied, "That works. I'll see you then."

Draco nodded once, briefly squeezed her hand, then sauntered out of the alcove and hallway like the Slytherin Prince he was.

Hermione shook her head and smiled. _I have no idea how two people that are so opposite work so well together,_ she thought, amused. She followed him out of the hallway five minutes later.

.ooOoo.

At exactly 11 o'clock, Hermione was sitting at a table in one of the back, hidden corners of the library with a 3-foot-tall pile of books on the table next to her. When Draco arrived a minute later, Hermione was so distracted by her book she didn't even hear him approach. He walked up next to her and whispered in her ear, "You know, Voldemort himself could stomp up next to you when you're reading and you wouldn't even notice."

Hermione jumped, hand clutching her chest. "You _scared _me," she exhaled, thwacking him in the arm with the book she'd been reading.

Draco laughed. "Oh did I? I'm sorry," he responded with a smirk that showed that he wasn't sorry in the least.

Hermione just shook her head at him, then patted the seat next to her. All of the other students had vacated the library long before either of them had gotten there, so they weren't worried about being spotted.

Without another word, Hermione picked up where she left off in the book in front of her and Draco snagged the top book from the pile on the table. They were content in the silence.

After an hour had gone by, neither of them had any luck finding anything about a spell that could make two people share dreams. Both Hermione and Draco were beginning to feel discouraged. Hermione closed her book with a sigh and rubbed her tired eyes. Draco looked over at her.

"Are you starting to feel like this is a hopeless task too?" he asked.

"At the moment, yes," she responded, looking back at him. "It's just so frustrating. I mean, Dumbledore's portrait wouldn't have left us to fend for ourselves if we weren't able to find the information on our own, but we're not finding anything," she huffed.

"Well you're right. Obviously there has to be something in this library that he intended for us to find. We just must be looking in the wrong places. Tell me one more time what he said when you went to talk to him."

Hermione repeated all that she could remember of the conversation, and finished with, "The last thing he said was that his friend said 'When two minds are connected to their full extent, nothing in this world can separate them' or something like that," Hermione said, frowning.

"Wait a second," Draco said, sitting up in his seat, his long-fingered hands clenching the table in his excitement. "That's it. That's the hint. Do you remember what his friend's name was?"

Realization dawned on Hermione. "Of course! Why didn't I think of it before? Shoot… it was something like… Eli… Elias! Elias Cunningham!" Hermione's face lit up and Draco smiled widely at her.

"Good job," he smiled a genuine smile at her before jetting out of his seat and into one of the many bookshelves. When he came back out, he was carrying four books in his hands. "Okay, these are the only four books the school has specifically on wizards and what they've done in improving spells relating to the mind." He set the books down on the table and Hermione pounced on the first one. Draco took the second.

Hermione quickly flipped to the index of the book and searched for anything on an Elias Cunningham. There was nothing there. She tossed that one to the side at the same time as Draco tossed his. They each grabbed one of the last two. Hermione looked once more, but this time she was lucky.

"I found him!" she exclaimed, and quickly flipped to the page the index said he would be on. Sure enough, _Elias Rasmus Cunningham (1871-1954) _was written at the top of the page, followed by a picture of an elderly man with a long, flowing white beard (like Dumbledore's had been, only a little shorter) who seemed really caught up in a large textbook.

_Elias Cunningham was born in Wiltshire in 1871. By the age of 24, Elias had become one of the foremost researchers of mind-affecting spells in the world. In 1937, at the age of 66, he had created the _Caput Capitis _spell which allows two people to speak to each other telepathically. It is rumored that he created this spell so that he would always be able to communicate with Alexandria, the beautiful princess of Denmark, with whom he was madly in love. Not much is known about their relationship but that it inspired much of his research…_

"Wow. I can't believe it," whispered Hermione after reading from Elias Cunningham's biography aloud. "He actually created a spell for telepathic communication?"

"Interesting," replied Draco, thinking about what they'd just read.

"Well it tells us what the spell is but it doesn't tell us how to use it. I wonder where we can find that information," wondered Hermione out loud.

"Well there are way more books in this library on spells than there are on specific people, so I'd say our best bet is to search the books on mental spells for any information on this specific one," said Draco.

"Yea, I'd say you're probably right," replied Hermione, meeting Draco's silver eyes and giving him a small smile. "I can't believe how much progress we've made tonight."

"Me neither," whispered Draco, returning the smile.

Hermione leaned over slowly and brushed a gentle kiss across Draco's lips. Her eyes fluttered shut as he returned the kiss, as light as butterfly wings brushing across each other. It took Draco's breath away. _What has come over me?, _he wondered. _I've become some sort of hopeless romantic. _Another part of his mind replied, _Only when you're around her. You're the same hard, cold Slytherin bastard you've always been everywhere else. _He took comfort in that fact. It unnerved him that she had such an effect on him. Draco didn't like to not be in control of a situation and he had absolutely no control when it came to his feelings for Hermione.

"Well I think we should probably get back to our dorms now. It's late and we need to get to sleep," Hermione suggested.

"Okay," he replied. "Goodnight, Hermione."

"Goodnight, Draco." Hermione got up, smiled at the blonde, then left, brushing her hand across his shoulder on her way.

.ooOoo.

The rest of the week passed by very quickly for both Draco and Hermione. The first half of the school year had disappeared before they knew it and the day of the Yule Ball was finally here. As excited as Hermione was for the Ball, she was also very sad that she wouldn't be able to go with Draco as a couple. The idea of having to keep pretending she hated him really bothered her. She hated having to keep her feelings for him a secret from the world, and especially from her friends, though she did that because she was terrified of their reactions if they found out she was dating their archenemy.

"Wow, Ginny. You look stunning," Hermione whispered in awe as she looked at Ginny's completed costume. The redhead's hair was curled and hung loose down to her hips. She had bright aqua shadow around her eyes and shimmer all over her exposed flesh, making her seem like she really did just pop out of the ocean. She looked like Hermione had imagined mermaids would look before she met the ones in the Black Lake.

"Thank you, 'Mione. I'm so happy with how this turned out. I hope Harry likes it," she said, a little unsure of herself. She turned to look in the mirror once more, making sure that her costume was perfect.

"Of course he will. Just look at you," Hermione pressed. "You're beautiful and he won't be able to take his eyes off you tonight, I guarantee it."

Ginny turned and smiled a grateful smile at Hermione. "Thank you. I feel better now," she laughed. "So why aren't you ready yet? The ball starts in a half hour," Ginny asked. Hermione had just gotten out of the shower and was standing in front of her armoire in just the new undergarments Ginny had convinced her to buy on their trip to Hogsmeade.

"I just got out of the shower, Gin," Hermione laughed. "Merlin knows you, Lavender, and Parvati took long enough to take your showers. I was the last one in."

Ginny grinned her brother's sheepish grin. "I guess you're right. Well here, let me help you get ready then. I can do your makeup and hair for you if you'd like since Parvati and Lavender are downstairs showing off their costumes."

"That would be great, Gin. Thanks." Hermione turned back to her wardrobe and pulled out the beautiful ball gown she'd bought. It was shimmery and light blue in color. It was ribbed in front like a corset, but cut low in the back, exposing everything from her neck to her lower back. Just one simple ribbon across the middle of Hermione's back held the dress in place. The gown hugged Hermione's body and accentuated her slender figure. From the waist down, the dress flowed out like a waterfall, hanging to the floor.

"I wanted to see if we could put my hair up into a messy bun with some curls hanging loose in ringlets around my face. Do you think you can do that?" Hermione asked Ginny.

Ginny just rolled her eyes. "Who do you think you're talking to? Of course I can," she huffed and proceeded to attack Hermione's hair, using both her hands and magic. In the end, Hermione's hair looked exactly as she'd wanted it to. It was held up by simple bobby pins the same exact color as her hair with crystals attached to the ends, making it look like loose gemstones clung to her hair.

Ginny decided to go very light and simple on the makeup. "I don't think you need very much makeup, honestly. I think we should go very soft and elegant with it."

"Do what you think is best, Gin. I trust you."

When Ginny was finished, Hermione had very light brown eyeshadow coating her lids with dark brown eyeliner to make her copper eyes stand out. Ginny smudged on some lipstick that was a couple shades darker than Hermione's natural lip color and covered that with a light coat of shimmery witch's gloss (the type that wouldn't come off until it was spelled off).

When Hermione looked at herself in the mirror, she gasped. "Oh my God, Gin, you're amazing. I never thought I could look like this. I actually look…"

"Beautiful," Ginny finished for her, smiling lovingly. "Now it looks like all you need is your necklace and shoes."

"And my tiara," Hermione added, still a little awestruck at her own appearance.

Hermione had Ginny clasp the black diamond choker around her neck and slipped gently into her spelled glass slippers. Then she turned to look at herself in the mirror one last time. She couldn't believe how amazing she looked. She truly looked like a princess stepped straight out of a fairytale. She actually felt like Cinderella.

Hermione smiled at herself as she slid the tiara into her hair. The individual gemstones sparkled like diamonds. She stared at her reflection, knowing that she looked perfect.

"Alright. I'm ready. Let's go," Hermione said, turning to Ginny.

"Okay," Ginny replied. The girls walked together down the stairs and into the light of the common room.

.ooOoo.

"But why aren't you GOING, Draco?" whined Pansy from her seat next to Blaise in the Slytherin common room. "It's the biggest event of the year and you couldn't possibly plan to miss it."

"Actually, I could. And I am. Not that it's any of your business, but I have much more important things to do tonight than attend a stupid Yule Ball. And I think you're hardly in a position to question my actions, Pansy," snarled Draco. He was tired of her questioning him.

Pansy flinched. "Fine," she huffed.

Draco raised his chin in defiance and stalked to his room. He was beginning to feel the hot stings of anger well up inside of him and that was the last thing he wanted to feel tonight. He sighed and leaned his head against the cool wood of his bedpost. The cool temperature calmed him down a bit.

Draco stood back up and walked over to his armoire. He'd calmed down enough to focus on what he was going to do. He had a plan to carry out and he'd be damned if Pansy's questions would stop him from going through with it.

.ooOoo.

As Ginny glided down the staircase, she searched the room for Harry. Sure enough, he was at the foot of the stairs chatting with Ron, his back to Ginny. Harry was dressed as King Arthur, in full battle gear, with a sword hanging from his hip. Ron was standing next to him in the bright orange uniform of a Chudley Cannon's keeper. When Ron saw Ginny, his eyes went wide and he smiled, nudging Harry. Harry turned around and his breath caught in his throat when he saw the angel, or rather, the mermaid, gliding toward him. He found it incredibly difficult to breathe.

"Wow, Gin. Just…wow," Harry stammered.

Ginny blushed scarlet. "You like it?" she asked self-consciously.

"Of course I do. You're beautiful. The most beautiful thing I've ever seen," he added, flushed.

Ginny smiled. "Thank you."

Harry took Ginny's hand in his and helped her down the last couple stairs. He was awestruck by the beauty standing before him. It was then that he realized how stupid he'd been to end things with her. He realized that he'd never stopped loving her, just tried to bury his feelings under his fears. _That's it. I'll never be so stupid again, _he swore to himself.

Ginny turned and smiled an excited smile at Hermione as Harry led her out the portrait hole toward the Great Hall where the Ball was being held. Hermione gave her a thumbs-up to encourage her and shook her head, smiling. She was so happy for the two of them. She felt that tonight would be the night Harry would come to his senses and realize that they were meant for each other, and that thought made her happy.

Ron stood at the foot of the stairs, staring at Hermione like he'd never seen her before. He politely took her hand and kissed her knuckles. "You look incredible, 'Mione," he stated.

"Thanks Ron. That means a lot," she smiled, surprised by the gentlemanly gesture that was so unlike Ron.

"Would you like me to escort you to the Ball, Madame?" he asked in an exaggerated French accent, bowing to her, with a lop-sided grin on his freckled face.

Hermione laughed. "I don't think Lavender would be too happy about you ditching her and escorting me instead. But thank you."

"I think you're right," he laughed back. "But if you change your mind, I'd be happy to be your escort."

"Well thank you, Ron," Hermione said, "Now go find your fairy. The Ball is going to start any minute." She shooed him off. He shook his head, laughing, but did as he was told. Soon enough, all of the Gryffindors had left the common room but Hermione.

Hermione looked down at her gown and sighed, the pangs of loneliness returning. She knew Draco would be at the Ball, which was one of the main reasons she wanted to look perfect, but she also knew there was no way they'd be able to be together tonight and that made her sad. _Stop it, Hermione, _she thought to herself. _At least you'll get to see him tonight._

With those last thoughts running through her mind, Hermione stepped out of the portrait hole and into the dark hallway.

.ooOoo.

When Hermione entered the Great Hall, everyone within a 30-foot radius stopped what they were doing and stared at her, eyes wide. She hardly noticed. She was too occupied with searching the room for one specific pair of stormy grey eyes.

_He's not here. _Hermione felt her heart sink. She was so disappointed and wondered where he could possibly be. _He wouldn't just not show up… would he? _she asked herself. She tried to remember if he'd said anything about skipping the Ball, but nothing came to mind.

The Great Hall looked incredible with all of its Yule decorations. All four of the long house tables had been removed and had been replaced by much smaller round tables periodically spread about the room. The ceiling above perfectly reflected the cloudless night outside and the stars were twinkling brightly along with the flicker of the candles floating above everyone's heads. As if to mimic the starry sky above, a sparkling black dance floor had been installed in the middle of the massive room and connected to the stage built on the far side of the room. Long green and gold garlands had been hung up around the entire room, reflecting the shimmering lights onto the ground and mistletoe floated above the crowd along with the candles. Hermione was in awe of the beauty and mood of the room.

"Hermione! Over here!" Hermione turned around quickly, her heart jumping in excitement until she realized that the voice that called out to her belonged to Dean Thomas, who was standing with all of her other friends, including Harry and Ginny, who couldn't seem to keep their eyes off of each other.

Hermione smiled a friendly smile to cover her disappointment that the voice didn't belong to Draco and headed over to where all of her friends stood. "Hey, guys," Hermione greeted them.

"Wow, Hermione. You look amazing," complemented Dean, shock plastered all over his face. He had come to the ball with Parvati, but she was off at the refreshment table with Lavender.

"Thank you, Dean. You look great, too." Dean had come to the ball as a ninja of sorts. Instead of all-black, he wore all-white, with a long-sleeved shirt and pants, and a bandana around his head.

"Aw, thanks." Dean smiled at her. "So where is your date, Hermione? He's a very lucky bloke."

"Oh. Thank you but I don't…" Hermione began, but was cut off when a very familiar voice from behind her said, "He's right here."

Hermione spun around so quickly she was surprised she didn't fall flat on her face. She came face-to-face with a pirate. The pirate had messy brown hair and dark blue eyes, so dark they almost looked grey. He was wearing a billowy black shirt that exposed a hard, muscled chest, and tight black leather pants. His hands were covered in black dragon-hide gloves and he wore black dragon-hide boots as well. The most peculiar part was that his face, from his forehead to his cheekbones, was covered with a thick black mask, and he wore a black bandana covering the top half of his head. There was a long sword hanging from his hip. Hermione's breath stuck in her throat.

"Dra…" she began, but caught herself in time and covered her slip-up with a cough. She just continued to stare at Draco in his impressive disguise. No one else would be able to recognize him, she was sure of it.

"Well, well, well. Who is this?" Hermione was pulled abruptly out of her thoughts by Ron's teasing but slightly protective voice.

"Oh!" Hermione blushed red. "Everyone, this is… umm… Wesley," Hermione lied. "Wesley, this is everyone," she glanced at Draco with trepidation, knowing he didn't want anything to do with her friends.

"Hello," he said in a polite but not necessarily friendly tone, meeting the questioning eyes of Harry, Ron, Dean, and Seamus. When he met the little female Weasel's eyes, he was surprised by the look she gave him, like she knew exactly who he was.

"Well, hello… Wesley," Ginny said with a cocked eyebrow and a pointed look, proving to Draco that she indeed DID know. He'd have to ask Hermione about that later.

Ron cut in again. "It's nice to finally meet the person Hermione's been running around with the last couple of months. I was beginning to think you were imaginary," Ron said, hinting at his disapproval of the secrecy that had engulfed Hermione and Draco's relationship from the beginning.

"Yes, it is nice to finally meet all of you," Draco replied, though no one but Hermione noticed the sarcasm in his voice. "Well I'm sorry to interrupt but I wondered if my date would allow me to steal her away for a dance." Draco looked directly into Hermione's eyes, picked up her hand, and brushed his lips across her knuckles.

Hermione's breath caught again, like it tended to do when she looked too long into Draco's eyes. Apparently they still had the same effect when they were glamoured to look blue. "Of course you may," Hermione breathed when she was finally able to catch her breath again.

Draco smirked and pulled her onto the now-crowded dance floor. The live band was just finishing a fast, energetic number. "How are you all liking the music?" the lead singer questioned. The students responded with eager screams. "Alright! Well, my band and I have started to branch out a bit into the muggle music world and we've really liked what we've heard. I wanted to play you one of the songs I've learned if that would be alright with you?" More screaming ensued. "Awesome. Well here you go." The singer picked up his acoustic guitar from where it lay on the stage that had been brought into the Great Hall for their performance. "The song is called _Iris_. I hope you like it…" And the singer began strumming slowly on the guitar.

"We're going to waltz," Draco whispered in Hermione's ear.

"But I don't know how," Hermione whispered back, a little surprised, though she should've known Draco would know how to waltz.

"Just follow my lead," Draco replied, then slid one arm around her waist, holding her hand in the other. He then began to lead her in the most beautiful dance she'd ever partaken in.

_And I'd give up forever to touch you_

'_Cause I know that you feel me somehow_

_You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be_

_And I don't want to go home right now._

"I love this song," Hermione breathed, shocked by how accurate the song was in her situation at the moment.

"…Me too," Draco replied. He'd heard it before on one of his outings in London with his parents and had been surprised to find that he actually liked a muggle song.

Hermione was shocked. Draco actually liked a muggle song? He met her eyes without breaking their step. He continued dancing as fluidly as though he'd been dancing his whole life. "Shocking, I know." Draco smiled.

Hermione was in awe of the man that held her. She found it increasingly difficult with every day that passed to remember the person he used to be. "You just keep getting more and more intriguing. I never know what to expect from you," she whispered.

"Is that right?" he whispered back.

_And all I can taste is this moment _

_And all I can breathe is your life_

'_Cause sooner or later it's over_

_I just don't want to miss you tonight._

Draco stared deep into Hermione's golden eyes. Even disguised as someone else, Draco Malfoy still took her breath away. She leaned her head against his chest as he led her around the dance floor. Neither of them noticed everyone else watching them, they were so caught up in each other.

_I just don't want the world to see me_

'_Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am._

"When I walked in here tonight and saw you, you stole my breath. You look stunning, Hermione," Draco murmured into her ear.

Hermione blushed and looked back up at him. "Thank you. I was hoping you'd think so. To be honest, I was a little worried."

"Why would you ever be worried? Have you seen yourself tonight? I can't even begin to describe

how beautiful you are," Draco scolded.

Hermione blushed some more. "You look amazing too. Even in a disguise."

"It was the only way I was going to be able to spend tonight with you. Plus, I would have done anything to get a nice night to myself without Pansy wanting me to dance with her all night," he replied, shrugging.

"I'm really glad. I can tell how much you hate her. It's completely understandable. But I'm so happy you're here with me right now, Draco," Hermione whispered, almost too softly for Draco to hear.

"I wouldn't be anywhere else."

Hermione sighed in contentedness and laid her head back on Draco's chest. He cradled her closer to him and continued waltzing as if they hadn't been speaking at all.

_And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming_

_Or the moment of truth in your lies_

_When everything feels like the movies_

_And you bleed just to know you're alive_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

'_Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken _

_I just want you to know who I am._

The couple danced in silence for the rest of the song, holding each other close and feeling content to be in each other's arms.

When the song ended, Draco looked down and lifted Hermione's face up so their eyes met. He leaned down and brushed his lips lightly against hers and she couldn't find the desire to push him

away. All she could think about when their lips were touching was that this had to be heaven. Nothing in the real world could ever be so perfect.

The couple never noticed the cold brown eyes glaring at them in suspicion from a dark corner of the room.

.ooOoo.

There was something very suspicious going on with the Mudblood and her new plaything, Pansy was sure of it. She couldn't believe it when she'd seen the two dancing. Granger's masked date had floated across the floor with a precision Pansy had only seen in one other person, a person that just so happened to be conspicuously absent at the moment.

Draco had told Pansy earlier that he wasn't going to be attending the dance and she hadn't known why then. Now she knew. Draco hadn't planned on attending the dance as himself, but rather, disguised as someone else. Just what in the hell Granger played into this, she had no idea, but she was damn sure going to find out. Pansy backed into a dark corner of the room to watch the two from a safe distance. If one thing was for certain, it was that Pansy wouldn't let them out of her sight tonight.

.ooOoo.

Hermione and Draco had danced for hours. The Ball was going to end in another half-hour, though most of the students were still in the room enjoying themselves. The two had been so caught up in each other the whole night that they hadn't noticed the many pairs of eyes watching them in curiosity. Ron and Harry were just two of the curious (and slightly protective) pairs scrutinizing the couple.

"So who do you think he is, Harry?" Ron questioned uncomfortably.

"I have no idea. I can't believe that our Hermione could keep her relationship with this bloke a secret from us, especially since it's become so obviously serious. Just look at how she's looking at him," Harry answered, frustrated that his best friend hadn't trusted him enough to talk to him about her relationship.

"Yea…" Ron replied, sighing.

"As frustrating as it is, I don't think we should question her about it. She obviously kept him a secret for a reason. I suppose she has a right to keep her private life private. Maybe if we leave her alone about it she'll open up to us…" Harry suggested, shrugging.

"Yea. Maybe," Ron agreed. "You're probably right."

The two eyed the dancing couple one more time before heading off to find their dates once more.

.ooOoo.

"Oh, wow. Look at the time. It's almost midnight. We should probably head out if we want to get a chance to say a proper goodbye," suggested Hermione, blushing. She didn't know why, after dancing in Draco's arms all night, just the thought of being alone with him in the hallway for a minute saying goodnight made her blush.

"Mmm… I think you're right. We should leave before everyone else does. I need to get back to my common room before anyone realizes I'm not where I said I'd be," Draco agreed, a frown creasing his eyebrows. He looked down into Hermione's face and the frown disappeared. He smiled gently.

"Let's go."

Hermione sighed when Draco took her small hand in his and began leading her to the massive double doors.

They walked hand-in-hand down the hallway until they reached their secret nook. Draco gently took Hermione into his arms. Hermione smiled.

"Finite," Draco whispered, pointing his wand at his disguised face. Immediately, the strange features melted away to reveal the sharp, aristocratic features that Hermione recognized. "I'm back," he laughed.

"You're back," Hermione agreed. "It's too bad you couldn't have attended the Ball as yourself in this outfit. All of the females would have fallen at your feet," she teased, smirking.

"Oh, I'm used to that already. No need to torment the poor girls even further by letting them see me like this. I figured I should give them a break for once," Draco smirked back.

"Oh, you're insufferable," Hermione rolled her eyes. "You know you're not nearly as amazing as you think yourself to be." She poked him in the chest.

Before she could even blink, Draco's lips had branded hers. Hermione's eyes fluttered shut a second before Draco pulled away, his trademark smirk in place.

"What was that you were saying about me not being as amazing as I think I am?" Draco whispered in her ear.

"Wha.. what?" Hermione breathed, her mind foggy from Draco's lips being so close to her skin.

Draco broke into laughter. "That's what I thought," he replied.

Hermione's mind finally righted itself. "Oh, you…" she growled. "Okay, fine. You're ALMOST as amazing as you think yourself to be."

"Mmhmm," Draco smirked. He leant down and kissed her again, no longer teasing. This one was for real.

Hermione sighed and wrapped her arms around Draco's neck, wanting to wrap her whole body around him. She felt like she couldn't get close enough.

Draco growled and spun them around so Hermione's back was against the stone wall, all the while deepening their kiss. Hermione lost all train of thought when Draco pressed her body firmly into the wall and tangled his hands in her hair. They never broke the kiss.

Hermione couldn't think at all, she could only feel, and what she felt was perfection. Nothing could be more perfect than this moment. She couldn't believe that just a few months ago they were sworn enemies, forced to hate each other because of a war that wasn't theirs. It seemed so long ago now. Now they were together and everything was perfect.

Draco was the first to break the kiss, choosing to lean his forehead against hers. He was breathing heavily in a pattern that matched hers. He took a slow step back, leaving his hands on her waist.

"Why can't I stop myself from getting carried away when I'm around you? I never struggled with self-control before you came into the picture," Draco sighed, running a hand through his slightly-disheveled platinum hair.

"I have no idea. I guess there's just something between us that makes us different together than we were apart," Hermione suggested.

"I guess so," Draco agreed. "But alas, now it's time to say goodnight. The Ball is going to end in a couple minutes and it wouldn't be a good idea to be caught together."

Hermione sighed. "Yea. Well goodnight, Draco. I'll see you soon so we can research those spells some more. I'll send you an owl tomorrow to schedule a time, okay?" she asked, disappointed that they had to separate after such an incredible night together. Part of her wanted to say 'Screw it' and spend the night in Draco's arms in the Room of Requirement, but she knew that would be a bad idea, seeing as how Harry and Ron now knew for sure she was involved with someone. She sighed again as she backed out of the hallway.

Draco nodded and smiled. "Goodnight Hermione. I'll see you tomorrow."

.ooOoo.

Pansy was fuming. She couldn't believe what she had just seen, even though she had suspected it beforehand. Of course she had followed the Mudblood and her date out of the Ball, hiding in a dark alcove near where the couple had stopped.

When Draco had finally revealed himself, Pansy'd nearly blown her cover. Part of her had wanted to run over and beat the Mudblood until she was just a smear on the ground, and that desire had increased tenfold when the two began snogging. Pansy had to stop the primal growl that'd been building in her throat from breaking free.

Pansy stayed hidden in her alcove for another fifteen minutes after the two left, calming herself down so she didn't do anything rash, and all the while plotting exactly what she would do to get revenge, both on Draco and his Mudblood whore.

Pansy grinned. She knew exactly what she needed to do. _If I can't have Draco Malfoy, no one will, _she decided. Pansy glided out of the hallway and toward the dungeons, determination set on her pug-like face.

**I can't stand Pansy. Can you? What's gonna happen now that she knows about Hermione and Draco? What is her evil plan? You'll find out soon enough. And yes, I just had to dress Draco up as Wesley from The Princess Bride, one of my favorite movies. The idea of Draco in tight black leather pants and a billowy pirate shirt is a very nice one to dwell on, right? Haha. Well, as usual, your reviews inspire me to write more, and I'm not feeling very inspired at the moment. Change that? Please? Thank you and I hope you guys are still loving the story. Let me know in a review! **

**Much Love,**

**MBS**


	13. Chapter 13

**CHAPTER 13:**

**Another one! Woot! I know it's taken me FOREVER to get to this part, and I can't express how sorry I am about that. School was eating me alive, but now it's summer and hopefully I'll have time to keep writing. Well, enough of me talking. Read and enjoy!**

Pansy burst into the Slytherin Common Room, causing every head to turn and look at her in shock. The dark, plotting look on her face scared many of the room's occupants, who then decided they didn't want to be anywhere near the girl and ducked into their dormitories.

Pansy smirked when she saw the reaction she'd gotten. Only a few students were left, most of whom were thoroughly buried in their homework and hadn't seen her come in in the first place. When Pansy looked toward the couch, she saw exactly who she wanted to speak to.

"Well, hello Blaise. Don't you look dashing tonight?" she purred, lowering herself onto his lap. She was internally disgusted, because she hated the dark boy with all of her being, but she knew he was the only one who would be able to help her achieve her revenge.

Blaise cocked his eyebrow at her in a very Draco-like manner. "What brings you here, Pansy?" he asked, giving her a good once-over.

Pansy had to stop herself from gagging. It wasn't that Blaise was unattractive, not at all. In fact he was very beautiful, but he was also the cruelest, most selfish person Pansy had ever met. She fought hard to keep her flirtatious smile in place.

"Oh, nothing. I was just noticing how great you looked and I realized how wrong I've been to deny you for so long. I was a fool. Can you ever forgive me?" she whispered, batting her eyelashes.

"Mmmm… well that depends. What are you really here for?" he asked, knowing full well that the girl on his lap would never come near him willingly without ulterior motives.

Pansy, knowing her act wasn't fooling Blaise, gracefully removed herself from his lap and sat down on the couch next to him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I was wondering if you'd seen Draco tonight. He supposedly planned on not attending the Ball," Pansy mentioned innocently.

Blaise caught on to the keyword. "What do you mean, supposedly?"

"Oh, well, it's just that I saw something rather odd after the Ball ended and I was wondering if perhaps you saw the same thing," she continued in a nonchalant manner.

"And…" Blaise cocked his eyebrow again.

"I saw Draco with the Mudblood," she blurted.

"And which Mudblood are we referring to?" he smirked.

"Which Mudblood do you think, Blaise? THE Mudblood. Hermione Granger of the blasted Golden Trio. That's who," she snapped.

Blaise smirked. "And what's so important about that?"

"I didn't just see them chitchatting, Blaise. I saw them SNOGGING in the hallway," she hissed. "Draco Malfoy was snogging Potter's mudblood whore." Pansy was beyond pissed. She was irate.

A surprised look passed over Blaise's face for a millisecond, but it was replaced by a rather sinister grin. "Well it seems that that's a very vital piece of information. Why exactly did you come to me with it?" he asked, smirking.

Pansy decided that it wasn't very likely that Blaise would do what she wanted him to do if she told him she wanted Draco punished severely for his actions, so she settled on a partial-truth. "Because you have a lot of power. I know Lucius asked you to keep an eye on Draco and I figured he might want to know if his only son was shagging a Mudblood. I thought maybe Lucius would be able to talk some sense into him if he knew the truth and I knew he would never listen to me if I told him. That left you."

"Hmm… I see. You're probably right about that," Blaise continued smirking at her and she had to fight the desire to smack the smug look off of his face. "Now what are you going to do for me if I agree to relay this information to Lucius, hm?"

Pansy blanched. She had mistakenly believed that what she'd told him would've been important enough on its own, and wouldn't need repayment. She should've known better. She sighed in disgust. "What do you want, Blaise?"

"Oh, you know what I want, Pansy," he answered, grinning maliciously.

He was right. Pansy did know what he would want, she'd just been hoping he would ask something else of her. She ground her teeth in frustration and disgust.

Pansy quickly looked over her options. If she refused Blaise, Lucius wouldn't know about Draco and the Mudblood, and he would be allowed to continue their sordid affair, which Pansy just couldn't live with. But if she gave in to him, he would relay the message to Lucius, and Draco would probably be punished severely for his horrifying romance and Lucius might even kill him for it. That would mean that no other woman in the world would be able to have him, which would be Pansy's biggest reward. Pansy decided that the rewards were worth the price.

"Fine, Blaise, you win. But after this, you'll relay what you heard to Lucius," she demanded, the revulsion evident in her voice.

Blaise grinned evilly. "Your wish is my command."

The whole conversation had been too quiet for anyone to overhear, including Draco.

.ooOoo.

The next morning Hermione woke up to the painful screech that was her alarm. She sighed and turned it off. _Today's the day Draco and I find out about those mind spells, _she thought to herself as she got out of bed and headed toward the showers. _We can't wait any longer. _

After showering, Hermione scribbled a quick note to Draco, telling him to meet her in the library at midnight tonight. She attached it to Hedwig (who happened to be sitting in the common room munching on an owl treat, with Harry nowhere in sight) and whispered, "Please deliver this to Draco Malfoy."

Hedwig hooted lightly, gobbled down the last of her treat, and flew out the window Hermione held open for her.

Five minutes later Hedwig returned with a different letter attached to her leg. It was a simple acknowledgement from Draco. Hermione nodded to herself and lit the letter on fire. Seconds later nothing was left of it but a tiny pile of ash on the maroon carpet.

.ooOoo.

Before Hermione knew it, it was midnight and time for her to head down to the library to meet Draco. She was slightly nervous about their meeting. If they did find out how to use the _Caput Capitis _spell, they would be able to speak to each other telepathically. That thought freaked Hermione out a little bit. She didn't know if she really wanted Draco to be able to see what went on in her mind.

Hermione sighed. Regardless of her reservations, she knew she had to find a way to use the spell. Dumbledore wouldn't have written about the necessity of them discovering 'the extent of their minds' connection' if it wasn't imperative for them to find it. "I guess this is it then," she whispered to herself, then grabbed the invisibility cloak and headed out the portrait hole.

.ooOoo.

When Hermione reached the library, she quickly removed the invisibility cloak and hid it in the bookbag she'd brought with her. She smoothed down her hair as much as she could and walked into the library.

Draco was already sitting in their usual spot, with his feet propped up on the table, and a book resting against his knees. There was a rather tall pile of spell books sitting on the table next to his legs.

When Draco heard her quiet footsteps approaching, he looked up to meet her gaze and gave her a small half-smile. "Hello, Hermione."

"Hi, Draco. Have you found anything?" she asked, nervous that he might have.

"Not yet," he sighed, then patted the seat next to him in invitation.

Hermione smiled lightly at him and sat down. She reached over and gently took his hand in hers, meeting his curious gaze.

"What's wrong?" he asked, confused by her sweet gesture. He still wasn't completely used to her touching him and it threw him off when she did things like hold his hand. As much as the two loved touching, they usually kept it in the Room of Requirement or their adopted hallway, not in someplace fairly open like the library.

"Nothing's wrong. I've just been thinking a lot about the _Caput Capitis _spell and it's got me a little nervous, is all. The idea of having someone else in my head freaks me out a bit, I guess," she laughed nervously, looking down at their joined fingers.

"Yea… I understand what you mean. I've been wondering about that too, but I suppose we shouldn't worry about it until we know exactly what the spell entails," he responded gently.

"You know, you're right," Hermione agreed, looking back up into Draco's silver eyes. "So let's get this search over with, shall we?" she suggested, taking her hand back and smiling a business-like smile at him.

Draco stifled a laugh. _Just one mention of research and the girl turns into a completely different person. _He shook his head and gazed back down at his book, while Hermione picked the next book off the top of the stack and began reading.

After they had searched through the indices of the top half of the pile, they finally found what they were looking for.

"Finally!" Hermione sighed in relief. She'd finally found the _Caput Capitis_ spell in the index of a book called Undeniably Demanding Mind Spells: A Compilation of the Most Trying Mind Spells Ever Created by Daniel Truesdale.

"What did you find?" Draco asked, setting his book on the table and leaning over to peer at Hermione's.

"I'm not quite sure yet, but I at least found the spell," she replied, flipping to the page the index had indicated the spell would be located on. "Aha. Here it is…"

_The Caput Capitis Spell: created by Elias Cunningham, _the title read. The two read the page together.

_The Caput Capitis spell is one of the most trying mind spells for telepathy ever created, not because of its difficulty, being rather simple to cast, but because of the deep connection needed between the casters. This spell has only been used three times in history because of this reason. In order to cast this spell, the two casters must be completely serious. Once cast, the spell is permanent. The couple will be able to speak to each other telepathically for the rest of their lives, no matter how far away they are from one-another. Though this fact scares many people off, the major reason only three couples in history have ever chosen to subject themselves to this spell is because of the mind-numbing pain one feels when the other caster dies. The two grow so used to their connection that, when one side is cut off, the emptiness is too much to bear and becomes a tangible pain. Usually this pain causes the remaining living caster to go insane. On the upside, the connection makes it very simple for the two casters to locate each other, no matter how far apart they may be. Also, once in the history of its use, the spell has allowed the couple to be able to share their power. If one is in danger, the other can funnel their power into them, making them stronger. The couple has to already be unusually strong for the spell to work in this way, though. In order to cast the spell, the couple must join their left hands together and say "Caput Capitis" at the same time, while holding their wands in their right hands. Once this is completed, the couple should be able to hear each other telepathically. Since this spell has only been used those three times in the history of its existence, not much else is known about it._

Hermioneand Draco finished reading at the same time, both looking up with wide eyes.

"Wow…" breathed Hermione. "No wonder we couldn't find it in any of the other books. Only three times…" she shook her head, trailing off.

Draco shook his head, his blonde hair falling into his eyes. "What are we supposed to do now?"

Hermione gave it some thought before she responded, not wanting to make a rash decision. "The thought really scares me, but I think we're supposed to go through with this."

Draco met Hermione's chocolate gaze and saw the fear that was fairly well-hidden behind the stubborn Gryffindor determination. "Is this what you want, Hermione?" he asked.

"Well, no, it's not what I WANT, but it's necessary and I can see that. Dumbledore would never have led us to this point if he didn't have a good reason," Hermione sighed.

"Then why are you so scared?" Draco asked, frustrated.

Hermione looked down at her hands curled in her lap and started picking at her cuticles. Draco thought she wasn't going to answer. "I'm terrified of my mind not being private anymore," she whispered honestly, meeting his gaze.

Draco searched her eyes and saw that that was all. Hermione wasn't afraid of HIM being in her mind; she was afraid of ANYONE being in her mind. That thought comforted him a bit and he sighed, snagging one of her hands before she could make her cuticles bleed. "I don't fancy that thought either," he admitted.

Hermione met Draco's silver gaze. "How about we promise to practice staying out of each other's heads unless directly spoken to? It'll probably be difficult, but it might work. And I've had a little bit of Occlumency training with the Order. Maybe that would help?"

"It's possible. Aunt Bella trained me last year. I'm rather good, as far as I know." When Hermione's gaze turned to steel at the mention of Bellatrix, Draco decided it was best to change the subject. "So does this mean we're for sure going through with it?" he asked.

"I suppose so," Hermione responded. "But it doesn't have to be tonight. We can think on it for a couple days if you'd like."

"Tomorrow. We can wait until tomorrow. I don't think we can afford to wait longer than that. That gives us another day to change our minds if we decide to," Draco suggested.

"Okay. Tomorrow then," Hermione sighed. _How can you put a time limit on a decision that will affect the rest of your life?_ she asked herself.

Hermione didn't know what to think. She felt so helpless and angry that Dumbledore would put something like this on them. But she trusted him enough to know he had his reasons for everything. She would wait until tomorrow, and see what happened then. Hermione sighed and leaned her head against Draco's shoulder, tired all of a sudden.

Draco glanced down at the thin brunette. "You need to rest," he whispered. He was tired, too, but would never admit it.

"Yea. So do you," she sighed and pulled away from him. She leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss against his mouth, then got up. "Goodnight, Draco," she attempted a smile.

"Goodnight, Hermione," he responded.

Hermione then turned and left the library, feeling the burden of this decision compressing her from all sides. When she reached her bedroom, she collapsed on her bed and fell asleep without bothering to change into her nightgown.

.ooOoo.

The next morning Hermione awoke to a soft tapping on her window. "Ugh. What time is it?" she grumbled to herself, sitting up and checking the time with her wand.

"11:23 AM," the wand's airy voice replied.

"Oh my gosh. Thank Merlin it's Saturday," she replied, then got up and headed to her window, where the tapping was growing more insistent. Hermione opened the window and gave a silent prayer of thanks that her roommates were already gone when the large white eagle flew in and perched itself on the footboard of her bed, ruffling its feathers in irritation.

"Well my goodness. You're just as impatient as your owner now aren't you?" Hermione huffed at the eagle as she untied the letter from the leg it was holding out. The eagle seemed to understand her and gave a testy click. As soon as the letter was detached from the eagle's leg, the bird took off from her bed and flew out the open window, not even waiting for a treat.

Hermione watched the bird go and rolled her eyes as she closed the window. Then she sat down on her bed and opened the thick piece of parchment, knowing it was from Draco since the bird was very obviously his.

"It's time. Meet me in the Room of Requirement when you get this letter. I'll be waiting. –D.M."

Hermione sighed. She'd been hoping to put this off as long as she could, but she knew what she needed to do. The spell was necessary and she shouldn't let her fears get the best of her. With her resolve solidified, Hermione got herself dressed and headed out of the portrait hole and down the long maze of corridors that she knew led to the Room of Requirement.

When Hermione reached the place where she knew the door to the Room of Requirement was hidden, she paced back and forth and thought to herself, _I need Draco Malfoy._ When the door appeared, Hermione realized just how accurate that thought was and gave a small laugh at the irony. _WANTING to be around Draco Malfoy is insane enough. When did I escalate to NEEDING him?_ Hermione shook her head, definitely not wanting to go anywhere near that question. She just opened the door to the room in which her life would be irreversibly changed forever.

.ooOoo.

When Draco heard the door to the Room of Requirement slide open, he knew who it would be, and part of him wished it was someone else so that he wouldn't have to go through with this insane plan.

"Draco?" Hermione asked, her eyes coming to rest on where he was sitting on a plush carpet on the floor in front of a fireplace. "The room is different," she observed.

"Yea. I figured we could make the room more comfortable since we're going to be spending so much time in it now, practicing the spell," he replied, watching her brown eyes take in her surroundings.

Hermione was surprised by how inviting this room looked. She didn't know why, but she figured Draco would envision a room like the Slytherin common room that Harry and Ron had told her about, but this room was completely different. There wasn't a speck of Slytherin green anywhere to be found. On the left side of the room, near where Draco was sitting, there was a massive black granite fireplace. On either side of the fireplace, facing each other, was a large, soft burgundy sofa and chair, with a table in between them. The entire back wall of the room was covered in floor-to-ceiling bookshelves filled with all of the titles they had looked at and found useful in the library, and some other books that shocked Hermione.

"Since when do you read Shakespeare?" she asked, the surprise evident in her voice.

Draco huffed. "He's a great storyteller. For a muggle, he seemed to really understand the mysteries of the human psyche. His works are unmatchable in their understanding of horror and pain… and love."

Hermione's shock wore off and she took in Draco's words, not expecting something so deep from him. "I was just surprised that you read muggle literature is all," she said lightly, smiling.

"I don't hate everything muggle. Just mostly everything," he said, the smirk on his face opposing his testy tone, so Hermione knew she was forgiven.

Hermione's eyes were drawn back to studying the room. To the right of the bookshelves, taking up a pretty much a whole wall, sat a giant mahogany-framed bed. The head and footboards were made of the glossiest, deepest mocha-colored wood Hermione'd ever seen. Both were engraved with magical creatures, from centaurs and minotaurs to giant serpents and tiny fairies. The detail that went into these carvings took Hermione's breath away. The bed was covered in a massive plum-colored down comforter and matching pillows.

Hermione's eyes flitted over to where Draco sat on the floor in front of the fire. The smile was gone from his face and his lips were pressed together, his eyes showing his trepidation.

"It's just so we don't have to get cramped up on a sofa if we accidentally fall asleep in here again. Nothing more than that," he said.

Hermione just kept looking at him, trying to read his silver eyes. "Okay," she responded. She had not been expecting to see a bed in their new Room of Requirement. The thought of them sleeping together on it caused conflicting emotions. One part of her was a little bit queasy at the idea, since she didn't know what would happen and that made her incredibly nervous. The other part of her believed him when he said it was just there for comfort in case they fell asleep again. For reasons unknown, she knew she could trust Draco, and that he would never push her to do anything she wasn't comfortable with.

Hermione padded over to where Draco was sitting, her feet sinking into the chocolate-colored carpet with each step, and knelt down in front of him.

"It's time," she said, not feeling it was necessary to elaborate since she knew he would know exactly what she was talking about.

"Yes," was his simple reply. He stood up and helped her stand. "So where do you want to do this?" he asked.

Hermione's gaze flitted involuntarily over to the new bed, and Draco caught it. He took her by the hand and led her over. They both sat down on one side next to each other. When they met each other's eyes they saw matching looks of trepidation.

"Are you sure about this?" Hermione asked, panic taking over. "You can always say no. I'm sure you wouldn't want me in your head for the rest of forever, right?"

Draco got a hold of his fear faster than Hermione did. "Yes, I'm sure. We need to do this. Are you sure?"

Hermione sighed, the resolve in Draco's voice calming her enough to think clearly. "Yes. Yes, you're right. We need to."

"Okay," Draco said, then turned to face her. She turned to him, too.

"Okay," she agreed.

Draco slowly reached over and picked up her left hand in his, then pulled his wand out of his pocket as she did the same.

"Here goes," he said. "On the count of three we say the spell together." Hermione nodded.

"One…two…three… _Caput Capitis!_" they both spoke at the same time and a thin white fibrous-looking material came out of the tips of both their wands, wrapping lightly around their wand hands and travelling down over their entire bodies. The last part to be enveloped by the white substance was their joined hands. When it had completely covered them, Hermione felt the breath rush out of her and her world faded to black. Draco barely had time to lay her completely on the bed before the darkness overtook him, too, and he collapsed next to her.

**Alright, my friends. We've pretty much reached the peak of the story here, and it's almost over. Only about 5 more chapters to go. Sorry I've made you wait for so long to get this chapter, but I hope it was worth the wait. Let me know in a review! I'm hoping I'll keep shelling out chapters now that summer's hit and I don't have school (until June that is). I am really gonna try to not keep you guys waiting so long for the next chapter. Keep prodding me in reviews; let me know you want me to keep going. Thanks guys and I hope you love this story as much as I've grown to. **

**Love,**

**MBS**


	14. Chapter 14

**Wow. It has been a while, hasn't it? I can't even begin to tell you all how sorry I am about keeping you waiting for this chapter. I literally just got stuck and couldn't write anymore for a long time. Then miraculously, the other day, it all came back to me and here is the result of that. I just want to give a special thanks to every single one of my reviewers and people who keep prodding me to write more, but I want to give a special thanks to Wen Quendalie, Chick Flicks – Rock 'N' Roll, and TheMagicDragon, my most recent prodders. They made me feel thoroughly guilty for not writing, so it sped up the process a little bit. Thanks so much to everyone. I love you guys bunches. Now, I know you don't want to hear me talk anymore, so here is what you've been waiting for… **

**CHAPTER 14:**

"_Hermione…. Hermione, wake up. You've got to wake up now."_

Hermione's head felt really cloudy, like it was stuffed with cotton balls. She felt her eyes fluttering open of their own accord. Slowly, the room came into focus, as did the pale, worried face of Draco Malfoy.

"What happened?" Hermione questioned as Draco helped her to sit up on the bed. Draco knew the instant everything clicked into place, because Hermione's eyes snapped from confused to terrified in a second.

"_Can…can you hear me?"_ Hermione's voice was timid in Draco's head.

"_I didn't realize people could stutter in their thoughts,"_ Draco's voice responded, teasing to ease Hermione's fears.

Hermione sighed, both mentally and out loud. _"We actually did it, then. The spell worked."_

"_Did you doubt that it would?"_

"_No, but I kind of hoped it would…."_

Draco kept his silver gaze locked with Hermione's. He nodded in reply. _"Me too… So what now?"_

"I guess we can communicate out loud since we're right next to each other right now," Hermione replied, her voice startling them both. They'd only spoken six lines to each other mentally, and already it felt natural, like they were supposed to be connected this way. It scared her.

"I agree. However, do you still want to practice mind-speaking, or are you done for the day?"

Hermione shook her head, then leant her forehead on Draco's shoulder. He was sitting in front of her on the massive four-poster bed, one leg touching the floor, the other bent Indian-style in front of him.

"_No, I'm not done. We need to practice. What time is it?"_ she asked. Draco was surprised by her determination to keep going even though this new ability of theirs surely drained her.

"_It's 3 o'clock," _he replied. _"We were out for three hours."_

"_Wow. Okay, well we have a few more, then. I won't be expected back in the common room until dinner."_

Draco nodded in response, then got up and pulled Hermione with him. _"So now what?"_ he asked_._

Hermione was silent for a few moments, both inside and out. _"I suppose we should see if we can block each other's thoughts, you know, for when we don't want to be heard."_

"_Okay. I guess this is where my Occlumency training comes into play. Tell me if you can hear me…," _Draco closed his eyes and focused very hard on sealing his mind. He envisioned walls building up around his thoughts, like Bellatrix had taught him so many months ago. After he was sure his thoughts would be guarded against any Legilimens, he opened his eyes and met Hermione's expectant chocolate ones. _"Can you hear me?" _he asked.

Hermione was impressed. All she heard was a faint humming in the back of her head, like a television on low volume in the room next door. _"I heard you say something, but I don't know what it was. You sounded really fuzzy and far away."_

Draco nodded, then closed his eyes again, focusing. _"How about now? Can you hear me?" _He opened his eyes again, signaling her to respond.

The buzzing was fainter this time, like the room was across the house, rather than a few metres away. _"That was better. The humming sounded much quieter that time." _Hermione smiled in encouragement.

They repeated this process for another fifteen minutes or so, Draco trying to seal his thoughts from Hermione, until the buzzing sound disappeared and was replaced by a sort of cloudy feeling. Whenever Draco spoke a blocked thought, Hermione felt it flow through her mind, rather than heard it. She couldn't understand what he was saying, but she knew that he was thinking, and those thoughts caressed her mind in a very comforting sort of way.

"_I think I understand what that book was saying about the emptiness one partner feels when the other dies. I may not be able to hear what you're thinking, but I can feel your thoughts drifting through my mind and it's kind of comforting. Now that we're joined like this, I find it hard to remember what it was like not having you in my head,"_ Hermione stated, blushing slightly at her revelation.

Draco was surprised. He focused on lowering the imaginary walls he'd built around his thoughts. _"Is that so?"_ he asked, and his voice filled Hermione's head once more.

Hermione smiled, enjoying being able to hear him again. _"Yes, it is."_

Draco smiled back. _"You try now." _

"_Okay,"_ she said, _"So how did you do it exactly? The Order taught me a little bit, but I'm no experienced Occlumens."_

"_Just imagine building a wall around your thoughts to block out everyone but yourself,"_ Draco responded.

"_Alright,"_ Hermione nodded, then closed her eyes as she focused on building that imaginary wall. Being the bookworm that she was, she used her very acute imagination to envision the wall going up brick by brick. When she felt like her thoughts were sealed off properly, she asked, _"Can you hear me?" _

Draco was surprised. He could hear the faint buzzing that Hermione had talked about. She sounded like she was whispering to him under water. He couldn't understand what she said, but he knew she'd said something. _"I can't understand you, but I know you said something. You sound like you're underwater."_

They'd been practicing Hermione's mind-block for ten minutes when Draco had a revelation of his own. _"You know, maybe we're not supposed to be able to block each other completely. Maybe we're meant to be able to feel each other's thoughts."_

Hermione nodded. _"I was thinking the same thing."_

"_Well, it's almost dinner time. I think we've almost mastered this mind-blocking thing. I kind of expected it to be harder than it was," _Draco said.

"_I did too. But we should probably head back now," _Hermione suggested, though her heart wasn't in it. After making this huge leap with Draco, she didn't want to leave their private room, the place where they could open up and be themselves with each other, just so they could keep pretending to hate each other in front of their classmates.

"_I don't want to pretend to hate you either, but we don't really have a choice. We can't risk the Slytherins or Potter and Weasley finding out about us," _Draco responded logically. Even though he didn't speak this aloud, his face reflected the frustration in his thoughts.

"_If you want, we can come back here after dinner," _suggested Hermione.

Draco smiled. _"Okay."_

.ooOoo.

Pansy shivered beneath her cloak as she trudged her way up the long drive to the Malfoy Mansion, alone, after apparating from Hogsmeade. _Stupid, stupid me. How could I have gotten myself involved in this? The Dark Lord isn't going to be happy and I'm the reason for his unhappiness. What was I thinking? _She was terrified.

When Pansy reached the giant front double doors, she lifted her hand to knock, but they opened before she could finish the motion. The grand entryway was very dark, the only light coming from the sconces hanging every couple of feet in the air above her head. The light cast spooky shadows on the walls, making Pansy shiver again.

"Miss Parkinson. How very nice of you to join us this fine evening," came a wheezy voice from the shadows. "The Dark Lord has been greatly looking forward to your appearance tonight."

"Wormtail," Pansy would have sneered if she wasn't so terrified. As it was, her voice came out as a shrill squeak.

Wormtail attempted a smirk, but it was more like a grimace. He turned and beckoned her to follow him down a long narrow corridor to the right of the entryway. His enchanted silver hand glinted in the candlelight and the reflected light danced across the walls. Pansy had no choice but to follow.

They came to another large oak door at the end of the hall, which Pansy knew to be Lucius' study. Wormtail raised his hand to knock, but a cold, snakelike voice hissed from the other side of the door, "Bring our guest in, Wormtail. Don't be impolite." Wormtail obliged.

When the door opened, Pansy realized she was right, that this was indeed Lucius Malfoy's study, but instead of Lucius sitting in the chair behind the desk, Pansy met the blood-red eyes of Lord Voldemort. Pansy quickly bowed her head. "Good evening, Master," she said, trying to hide the fact that her voice was trembling terribly.

"Oh, don't be frightened, child. You aren't here to be punished," Voldemort said in what should have been a comforting tone, but with his hissing voice, sounded even more terrifying. "I hear from Lucius that you have some very intriguing news for me involving our dear young Mister Malfoy."

"Yes, my Lord," Pansy whispered, still not meeting the Dark Lord's eyes, but she did notice that both Lucius and Narcissa were sitting quietly in the corner, Lucius with a bloodthirsty look in his eyes and Narcissa trying to hide the terror on her beautiful face.

"Well, go on now, child. Tell me what you've seen."

Pansy finally looked up into the Dark Lord's corpse-like face. "As I'm sure you already know, my Lord, Hogwarts held a Ball for the Fall holidays," she began, then paused.

"Yes, I am aware. Get to the point… my dear," Voldemort responded, adding the last part to help hide his irritation.

"Draco told everyone that he wouldn't be attending, that he was going to stay in our common room. I believed him until I noticed that there was a man dancing with Potter's mudblood friend, Hermione Granger, who moved in a way identical to Draco. I found this odd, since this person looked very different. His hair was dark, and he was wearing a mask over his face. I'd never seen him before. So when the Mudblood and her date exited the Great Hall, I decided to follow them and see who this man was. The two of them stopped in an abandoned corridor, and all of a sudden, it wasn't that dark-haired stranger with the Mudblood, but Draco. He must have put a glamour on himself to hide his true identity. Before I knew it, he was snogging the Mudblood and there was nothing I could do about it. If I would've shown myself, Draco would have erased my memory and I wouldn't have been able to relay this information to Blaise Zabini, who, in turn, relayed it to Lucius. I'm sorry, my Lord," Pansy breathed. She'd gotten rather heated in her relaying of the story.

The Dark Lord merely stared at her, his hands held under his chin. He continued staring at her for quite a few more minutes, while the time seemed to drag by excruciatingly slowly for Pansy. She didn't know if she would be punished for this information or not. Finally, when she thought she couldn't bear it anymore, she looked up into the Dark Lord's lidless eyes, and he smiled. It was a cold, sinister smile, like the smile on a vulture's face before it takes a huge chunk out of a fresh carcass.

"Well, my dear. This is very important information. Now I know where the Malfoy boy's loyalties truly lie. I can't allow him to continue this sordid affair, now can I? Thank you for sharing this with me," the Dark Lord hissed. He unfolded his hands and stood up from his chair, and, without looking in her direction, beckoned Narcissa forward coldly.

"Now you will see what happens to blood traitors, Narcissa. Show me your Mark."

Narcissa sobbed and was too slow to comply, so the Dark Lord viciously grabbed her arm and tore the sleeve completely off of her robe. He pressed his wand tip painfully into the pale, smooth flesh of her arm. Before Pansy could blink, she was surrounded by Death Eaters, but Draco's face was missing from the crowd.

"Draco Malfoy is a blood traitor. I will show you all what happens to blood traitors in my ranks," the Dark Lord boomed.

"Will you kill him, my Lord?" Lucius asked from the shadows, no concern evident in his voice.

"Not right away. I think I'm going to play with him first. I'm going to have a little fun before I finish him off. And of course, Miss Parkinson here deserves her reward for this information as well. I'll be… how does the saying go?... killing two birds with one stone."

.ooOoo.

Hermione and Draco made sure to enter the Great Hall separately so as not to draw unwanted attention to themselves, but they were unaware of the dark eyes staring at them from the shadows. Pansy went completely unnoticed by everyone. She'd just returned from her meeting with the Dark Lord and was absolutely thrilled that it had gone well. The Dark Lord hadn't been angry with her at all. In fact, he had been grateful that she had told him about Draco and the Mudblood. Pansy couldn't believe her luck, and while she had no idea what her reward would be for sharing her precious information, she knew it would be good. The Dark Lord was known to give generous rewards to people who showed loyalty to him. A cold and slightly maniacal smile lit up her pug-like face as she moved toward the Slytherin table for dinner.

.ooOoo.

"Where were you, Hermione?" Ron asked as the brunette sat down across from him at the Gryffindor table.

"Studying," she responded, still lost in thought about the progress she and Draco had made. She was a bit dazed, truthfully. But she felt a lot better about it now that it was over with and she didn't have to stress out about making such a huge decision. And feeling Draco's thoughts caress her mind was comforting in ways she'd never felt before.

_Hermione. Can you hear me?_ Draco's voice was suddenly loud in Hermione's head and she jumped a foot off the bench. Ron dropped his fork and Harry looked at her wide-eyed.

"What? What happened?" Harry asked, startled.

Hermione pressed a hand to her chest as if that would help her pounding heart and shook her head. "Nothing. It was nothing. I just thought I saw a spider in my food. But I must have imagined it. Sorry," Hermione said, her pale cheeks reddening in embarrassment.

"Sp – spider?" Ron asked, horrified. He looked down at his food in disgust and pushed it away with one finger. "I'm not hungry anymore."

"Oh, come on, Ron. She said she imagined the spider," Harry said, laughing at his best friend. Ron coughed and shook his head, still staring at his food like it was about to jump up and bite him.

Hermione's heart slowed down and she had to stop herself looking over at the Slytherin table. She could hear Draco laughing in her head. _Oh, you find that amusing, do you? You just wait until I do that to you when you're not expecting it. Then we'll see who's laughing at whom. _Her tone betrayed the fact that she was beginning to find it slightly amusing too, now that her heart had slowed back to its normal rate.

_Now, you've got to admit that the look on the Weasel's face was priceless when you told him you saw a spider in your food, _he laughed.

Hermione had to stop herself from laughing out loud, but she laughed in her head and she knew Draco could hear her. Once her inner voice had calmed down, she said, _So I guess this mind connection thing works just as well all the way across the Great Hall as it did when we were right next to each other._

_I think it would work just as well if we were across the world from each other. It's really an amazing thing, _Draco replied.

_Yea. Amazing, but crazy. _Hermione couldn't stop herself from turning a little bit in her seat to meet Draco's eyes. He sneered at her, keeping up his old act, and she sneered back, at the same time saying, _It's funny how our faces can say one thing, but we can be saying something totally different in our heads._

_Yes it is. All of the reasons I used to hate you seem so stupid and childish now. It's amazing what a little maturing can do to a person,_Draco said, surprising Hermione. She hadn't been expecting an apology.

_You already know that you're forgiven. And I used to hate you, too, so you're not the only one that was stupid and immature, _Hermione said.

_Yea, but you hated me because of how I treated you. I hated you because that's what I was taught to do. There is a big difference between us, Hermione. You're a lot better of a person than I could ever be, _Draco's mental voice sighed.

Hermione's heart broke a little bit for him. _You're making up for everything that you've ever done. You're not the same person, Draco. You're a very good man now, even if the rest of the world doesn't know it._

Their mental conversation was interrupted when Harry tapped Hermione on the shoulder, looking at her funny. "You still with us, 'Mione?" he asked.

"Of course. Why do you ask that?"

"You just seem really distracted is all. Are you sure you're okay? Does it have to do with that bloke from the Ball?" Harry asked. Hermione could tell that both Harry and Ron had been dying to ask about the Ball, but they never knew when to inject it into the conversation. Now was the time, apparently.

"Nope. Nothing to do with him. I'm just distracted by homework, I guess. It's been a long day. I spent a long time in the library studying," she replied, her face turning red again.

"You know, you don't have to lie to us, Hermione. We just want to know what's going on with you. We feel like you've become really distant lately and we don't know why," Harry said, a wounded look on his face.

_Great, _Hermione thought to herself, making sure to close her mind off so she didn't project her thoughts to Draco. _What do I do now? _She settled on telling them a half-truth. "Okay, yes. I was with him. I just didn't want you guys to think I was ditching you or anything. I really want to be spending more time with you guys, but I've just been really distracted lately about things having to do with him."

"He's not hurting you, is he?" Ron asked, turning a little red, both from embarrassment about asking about Hermione's relationship and from anger at the idea that any man would be hurting his best friend.

"What?" Hermione asked, startled. "Of course not. He would never hurt me." And without having to think about it, she knew that was the truth. As much as he'd hurt her in the past, the Draco she knew now would never hurt her.

"Okay, good. 'Cause I would have to kill him if he ever laid a hand on you," Ron said, turning an even more astounding shade of red.

Harry nodded vigorously his agreement, and Hermione smiled. It felt great that these two amazing boys cared so much about her. "I'm really sorry we haven't been able to spend very much time together lately. I promise I'll change that," Hermione said, feeling guilty.

Before either of the boys could respond, Professor McGonagall's voice broke into the conversation. "It looks like you might be getting the opportunity to do just that," she said, then, lowering her voice so only the three of them could hear, she added, "Dumbledore's portrait would like to speak to you all right now. It's urgent, but he won't tell me what it's about." She sounded slightly frustrated about that, but she understood that it was just between them and Dumbledore.

As McGonagall walked away, the same thought echoed through all of their heads: _Horcruxes._

**Yes, I know. Another cliffhanger. I just so enjoy those, I can't help throwing them in there. I'm definitely going to try to keep writing every couple of days, or as often as I'm inspired and can fit it in my crazy hectic schedule. But just keep prodding me with reviews. I can't tell you how happy and excited it makes me to have people telling me that they like my story. And as you saw above, prodding actually works. So prod all you'd like! And let me know what you think.**

**Thanks so much,**

**Love you all,**

**MBS**

Page | 4


	15. Chapter 15

**CHAPTER 15:**

**So my writing muse just smacked me in the face tonight and I busted out 12 pages. I hope you enjoy them…**

Hermione, Ron, and Harry exchanged a quick look with each other and stood up at the same time. Bidding goodbye to their friends, they left the Great Hall, all feeling the burden of the conversation to come on their shoulders. As she was exiting the Hall, Hermione shot a quick glance at Draco.

_I don't know when I'll be back. I'll still try to meet you in the Room of Requirement after this. _

Draco shivered when Hermione's worried words glided through his head.

_Okay. Just let me know when you're done and I'll be there._

_Thanks, _she replied, then blocked her thoughts again.

Harry looked over at Hermione as they followed McGonagall down the dark corridor to the Headmistress's office and noticed the worry creasing the skin between her eyes. He took her hand gently and she looked up and met his emerald eyes.

"It'll be okay," he whispered so quietly that neither Ron nor the Headmistress heard him.

Hermione just nodded and smiled sadly at him. She knew that it was finally time for them to go searching for the missing Horcruxes and all of her worry and fear about them came back and struck her at the same time. She was slightly overwhelmed, but she knew that as long as the three of them were together, they would be okay.

When the spiral staircase finally ground to a halt in front of the large oak door to the Headmistress's office, the feeling of foreboding nearly overwhelmed Hermione. Harry could sense the worry in his best friend and squeezed her hand again, letting her know he was there for her.

"Well, here goes nothing," Ron whispered.

McGonagall opened the oak door and the Golden Trio entered the room.

"Thank you very much for retrieving them for me, Minerva," Dumbledore's voice called out softly from the place where his portrait hung on the wall next to McGonagall's desk.

"You're welcome, Albus," she responded. "I take it you want me to leave?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled through the portrait as he gave her a soft but knowing smile. He nodded once. "Yes, please, my dear."

McGonagall sighed but did as she was asked. The door closed with a soft click behind her and silence filled the room. None of the three Gryffindors dared to breathe.

"I'm sure you know why I've called you all up here," Dumbledore said kindly.

Harry was the first to respond. "The Horcruxes," he replied. It wasn't a question.

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, Harry. I think I have finally determined the locations of the final Horcruxes. The time has come to end Voldemort's reign forever."

Harry, Hermione, and Ron all moved up and sat in the seats in front of McGonagall's desk, completely entranced by Dumbledore's words.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "So what are they, Professor?"

"Well, my dear, we know that we've already destroyed two of the six. (Author's note: Harry isn't a Horcrux in this story, so there's only six.) Harry destroyed Tom Riddle's diary in second year when he was brought down into the Chamber of Secrets to rescue the young Miss Weasley." Ron turned slightly yellow at the mention of what almost happened to his sister. "Then, last year, I retrieved Marvolo Gaunt's ring and destroyed that with the Sword of Gryffindor. So we know how they can be destroyed. As long as you can pierce them with the Sword, those pieces of Voldemort's soul will be killed and you'll be one step closer to ending this," Dumbledore stated.

"So what are the others, Professor?" Harry asked. Hermione knew he'd been wondering this since he'd found out about the first Horcruxes last year.

"Well, Harry. We already know the first one you need to find," Dumbledore started.

"The locket that R.A.B. stole," finished Harry.

Dumbledore's painted eyes twinkled. "Yes, Harry. And have you given any thought to who R.A.B. might be?"

Hermione's mind sprang into action. She'd given this a lot of thought when they'd first realized that the locket was a fake. "Yes, Professor. Regulus Black is the only person that made sense. He was very involved in the dark arts for a while before he died, right? So he must have gotten close to Voldemort and found out about the Horcruxes."

Dumbledore smiled. "You certainly are the cleverest witch of your age, aren't you, dear? Yes. My guess is that Regulus found out about the Horcruxes and discovered the real locket in the cave. He must have taken it with him."

"But Professor?" started Harry, confusion plain on his face, "How did he escape the cave by himself? Even you needed me there to get you to finish the potion. There's no way Regulus could have done it on his own, could he?"

Dumbledore's smile widened. "That puzzled me as well, Harry. Then I got to thinking, who would Regulus have trusted not to tell about the Horcruxes? He couldn't have trusted any of his colleagues. And his family more than likely wouldn't have supported the idea of him destroying their Lord. So who would have been bound to obey his command to keep quiet?"

Hermione's eyes widened. "Oh my god! It's Kreacher, isn't it? Kreacher has the locket! If Regulus had ordered him not to tell, he wouldn't have been able to tell. And even if he hadn't been ordered, he loved his family enough to keep quiet anyways."

Dumbledore actually laughed. "My conclusion exactly, Miss Granger. It is my belief that Kreacher is the one that helped Regulus escape the cave, and that he is still in possession of the locket."

Harry's eyebrows drew together. "But how do we get him here?"

Dumbledore raised one silvery eyebrow.

"Oh! Kreacher! Come here, now!" Harry shouted. A second later there was a loud pop and the raggedy house elf was standing before them.

"Blood traitors and mudblood filth. If Mistress were alive, she'd skin Kreacher for being in this room," he grumbled under his breath before adding, "Yes, Master? You summoned poor Kreacher?"

Harry fought against the urge to hit the evil little monster. "Yes, Kreacher. Tell me, when Regulus was alive, he made you go to a cave with him, didn't he? He made you pour a potion down his throat that made him beg you to kill him. Then he gave you the locket at the bottom of the potion, didn't he?"

As Harry asked, Kreacher's already huge eyes widened even more and he whined.

"Didn't he? Tell me, Kreacher," Harry ordered.

Kreacher sank to the floor and sobbed. "Yes. Yes, Master Regulus forced Kreacher to poison him with that horrible potion. Yes! Kreacher deserves to be punished for what he did to Master Regulus!" Kreacher then began to pound his face furiously against the hard stone floor.

Something inside Harry twinged for the nasty little bugger. The pity he felt surprised him. "Stop it, Kreacher," he ordered, and he could see Kreacher trying to fight the command. It was then that Harry realized that Kreacher wasn't really evil. He was just misled by the people who were supposed to take care of him. He'd been trained to hate muggleborns and so-called "blood traitors". The pity he felt for the elf grew when he realized that he must have been horrified by what he saw that night with Regulus. Even though he hated everyone else, he loved his old Masters and Mistresses. Harry sighed.

"Kreacher, it wasn't your fault. You didn't do anything wrong. Regulus commanded you to force him to drink that potion. He knew what he was doing. He knew it would kill him, but he trusted you enough that you were the one he chose to spend his last moments with. He cared about you, Kreacher. Don't punish yourself for something you didn't do," Harry said lightly. He knelt down to look Kreacher in the eye.

Kreacher was shocked. He stopped trying to fight Harry's command. "Harry Potter thinks Master Regulus cared about Kreacher?" he asked, and Harry could hear the hope in his voice.

"Yes, Kreacher. I'm sure he cared about you. And he wouldn't want you to punish yourself anymore. He would want you to forgive and move on and stop dwelling on the past."

Kreacher stopped crying. He seemed to be giving what Harry said some thought. "All this time, Kreacher blamed himself for Master Regulus' death. Kreacher thought, if he'd been a better house elf to Master Regulus, none of that would have happened. But it wasn't Kreacher's fault. Master Regulus chose his fate." Kreacher looked up at Harry and actually smiled. "Thank you, Harry Potter, for freeing Kreacher from his pain. Anything Harry Potter needs, Kreacher will get for you."

Harry looked at Ron and Hermione in surprise. Both of them had kept quiet the whole time. Ron nodded and Harry looked back at Kreacher.

"Well, Kreacher, there is something we'd be very grateful if you did for us…" Harry said.

"Yes, Master Harry. Anything," Kreacher nodded emphatically.

"Would you please bring us the locket you got from Master Regulus that night?"

Kreacher smiled and snapped his fingers, disappearing with a loud crack. Less than a second later, there was another loud crack and he was back, a large silver locket dangling from his skinny grey finger. "It's yours, Master Harry."

Harry's hand shook as he reached out to take the locket from Kreacher. "Thank you, Kreacher. Now please don't tell anyone about this. If anyone asks you about the locket, you tell them you've never heard of anything like it, okay?"

"Yes, Master Harry. Kreacher will never say a word about it."

"Thank you, Kreacher. You're free to go back home now," Harry said, examining the locket in his hand. Harry looked up and gave his first genuine smile to Kreacher.

Kreacher smiled back. "If Master Harry needs anything else, just call Kreacher."

"I will," Harry responded, then Kreacher disappeared with another snap of his fingers.

The room was quiet for a whole minute before Dumbledore broke the silence.

"Well done, Harry. That was easier than I could have dreamed."

Ron and Hermione exchanged a wide-eyed glance before looking back at Harry, who was still holding the locket between two trembling fingers.

"I can feel Voldemort in the locket, Professor. It's tainted with his evil," Harry whispered, looking over to Dumbledore's portrait.

"Then destroy it, Harry. The sword is lying on the desk behind you," he replied just as quietly.

Harry nodded once, then set the locket on the ground and turned for the Sword. Hermione and Ron watched anxiously as Harry lifted the Sword of Gryffindor above his head. The fragmented piece of Voldemort's soul must have known what was coming because the locket began to twitch violently on the ground. This didn't seem to faze Harry; he just swung the Sword down full force. The second the blade touched the outside of the locket, a huge jolt of something like electricity passed between the blade and the locket. Harry was thrown off his feet and flew across the room, slamming hard against the far wall and collapsing to the ground. He grimaced as he stood back up, using the Sword for balance.

"Merlin. Wasn't expecting that," he said, wincing. He hobbled back over to the other two Gryffindors. Hermione and Ron were staring at the locket, which had stopped twitching. There wasn't a scratch on its silver surface. "What do we do now, Professor?" Harry asked, and the three Gryffindors looked up to meet the cool blue eyes of Dumbledore's portrait. His eyes were narrowed in thought.

"Hmmm… Well my guess is that the locket has to be open to be destroyed," he replied.

Harry knelt down and picked up the now heated locket. It was almost hot enough to burn his fingers, but he didn't let go of it. He could feel Voldemort's soul moving around in the locket, panicked. He tried to pry it open with his fingers, but the two sides remained firmly sealed. "It won't open. Maybe a spell would work?" he asked, more to himself than anyone else. The others just continued watching him. He fired spell after spell at the locket, but it just seemed to absorb them. None of them did any damage to the locket. Harry sighed, frustrated.

Hermione was thinking hard about how to open the locket. _How would Voldemort have chosen to protect a piece of his soul? What would he have done to make it so that only he could unlock it?_ Then it clicked. "Harry, try Parseltongue."

Harry looked up in surprise, then nodded, determination set on his dark features. _"Open," _he commanded with a hiss. The two sides of the locket popped open with a little click, and one blood-red slitted eye was staring out from each side of the locket.

Hermione let out a little scream. The bloody eyes set on her.

"_What's wrong, my dear girl? Come over here and pick me up and I'll show you you have nothing to fear." _The voice that came out of the locket was entrancing. Hermione just wanted to obey it. She took a step toward the locket before she felt a warm hand grip her arm and pull her back. She struggled for a second before she heard the person who had grabbed her yell, "Stop it, Hermione. Don't listen to it."

Ron's voice snapped her out of her trance and the red eyes set on Ron's dark blue ones. _"Oh come now, Mr. Weasley. You know I'm no danger to you. I can protect you. I can protect your whole family. In the war to come, if you have me on your side, no one you love will be harmed. Just come pick me up and you and your loved ones will be safe."_

It was Hermione's turn to stop Ron. She grabbed him by his arm and yelled, "Stop, Ronald! It's a lie! Kill it, Harry. Stab it with the Sword!"

Harry moved to obey her when the eyes set on him. Blood red met emerald green and Voldemort's eyes narrowed. _"Don't you think you've caused enough destruction already, little boy? If you would just obey me and join my side no one else in this world would be hurt. You have the power to save the world and you can only do that by joining me." _

Harry faltered and Hermione knew that if she didn't do something right away, it would be too late. Harry was already reaching for the locket, pain and guilt painting his face. He dropped the Sword and Hermione lunged for it, letting go of Ron's arm. She lifted it above her head and slammed it down on the two halves of the locket right before Harry's fingers reached it. A terrible, agonized scream echoed throughout the room. The locket smoked and shrieked for what felt like hours to Hermione. Suddenly it stopped, and the room was silent. Harry and Ron were both staring transfixed at the spot where the locket lay fragmented on the ground. The sound of the Sword clattering to the stone floor broke the silence and every eye in the room shot to where Hermione stood, her face the portrait of exhaustion.

"Now what are the other three, Professor?" Hermione asked.

All three men looked at her in surprise. Dumbledore was the first to recover.

"Come, sit down again," he replied. Once the three Gryffindors had done as he'd asked, he continued where he left off. "Well, we know how obsessed Tom Riddle was with Hogwarts and the founders. My guess is that he would never have taken an item from Gryffindor to make into a Horcrux because of how much he hated all that Godric stood for, but he would have taken something from the other founders. Rowena Ravenclaw was known for her intelligence, something that he admires in himself, while Helga Hufflepuff was revered for her loyalty, a quality he requires in his followers. And we know that he was a descendent of Salazar Slytherin, whom he worshiped for his disdain toward muggles and muggleborns. We've already found the item he took from Slytherin. That locket on the floor belonged to Salazar. Now, if my guesses are correct, I believe that the items he took from Helga and Rowena are the items they revered the most. Look up and you'll see their portraits."

The three young Gryffindors did as he asked. The portraits of the four founders were at the very top of the wall, above the portraits of the rest of the old headmasters and headmistresses. Helga Hufflepuff's portrait smiled sweetly down at them, while Rowena Ravenclaw's portrait glanced down a little haughtily. Helga held up a bright gold chalice, and made a toasting movement toward them, while Rowena just continued looking down her nose at them. On top of her mane of wild black curls, she wore a shining silver tiara, completely encrusted with jewels. That was the only thing in the portrait that Voldemort would have been likely to make into a Horcrux. Harry highly doubted that he would have made her dress into one.

"So… Hufflepuff's cup and Ravenclaw's tiara?" Harry asked, confused.

Dumbledore smiled. "Yes. It is my belief, since Tom Riddle viewed Hogwarts as his home and was sent to the Headmaster's office more than once during his school years, that he must have seen the portraits of the founders just as you see them now. My guess is that he began to lust after the items he saw in the portraits and sweet-talked the women into revealing where their greatest treasures were hidden…."

Dumbledore was interrupted by a haughty and irritated voice from above. "He never sweet-talked me, Albus. You should know that I am far too intelligent to fall for some young man's wiles. I saw in him an intelligence far greater than any other student I'd ever met, and I revealed to him where I hid my diadem."

"My mistake, Rowena," Dumbledore smiled. He was about to continue when another voice spoke from above, this one sweet and airy.

"Well he certainly wooed me, Rowena. He was a very charming young man, and very handsome too. When he asked me where I hid my cup, I told him. He just seemed so curious, and I admired that about him," Helga Hufflepuff replied from her portrait. She sighed dazedly, and didn't speak again.

Dumbledore's smile widened. "Of course, he was very charming Helga. I agree. But anyways, you see that it is very likely that he took the diadem and the cup and made them into Horcruxes."

Hermione, Ron, and Harry all nodded their agreement.

"So what's the last Horcrux, Professor?" Ron asked quietly.

"Well, Mr. Weasley, I believe that the last Horcrux would be something he could keep around him at all times, one of the only things he's ever truly connected with."

The three watched Dumbledore in silence. A minute ticked by and Harry was overcome with a thought. "Professor, can a Horcrux be something living? Could he make Nagini into a Horcrux?"

"Very good guess, my boy. Yes, I do believe that's exactly what he did. It is my belief that he wanted to have at least one Horcrux he could keep by his side at all times, something capable of defending itself, just in case someone found out about the Horcruxes and managed to destroy the rest of them. So yes, Harry. I'm sure that Nagini is the final Horcrux."

Harry sighed and closed his eyes briefly. "So that means that we'll have to catch Voldemort unawares. We can only hope that he doesn't find out that we've discovered his secret before we kill the snake. We'll have to save her for last just in case."

"So where are they, Professor? We know that Nagini is with Voldemort, but where are the diadem and the cup? And for that matter, where is Voldemort? Is he still at Malfoy Manor?" Hermione asked, wanting to escape the tension in the room. All she wanted to do was go find Draco, wrap herself in his arms, and forget the rest of this mess existed. But that was unreasonable. The world depended on the destruction of the Horcruxes.

"Now that was the part I had the most trouble with. We know that with the other Horcruxes, he hid them places that meant something to him. Places that brought back memories of his past. The ring was hidden in the Gaunt cottage. The diary found its way into the Chamber of Secrets. And the locket was hidden in the cave where Tom Riddle tortured his first muggles. So it seems as though he's following a pattern. I believe that you'll find the cup and the diadem in places that have meaning for Voldemort. I'm almost certain that he has hidden one of them with his favorite follower."

"Bellatrix Lestrange," Harry growled.

Dumbledore nodded. "Yes. I'm certain she has one of them. My guess is that she has the cup, since I doubt Voldemort would have wanted to give the diadem to anyone. He would have wanted to keep the item that was said to be infused with magic to make the wearer more intelligent for himself. He wouldn't want one of his followers to become more astute than he."

Hermione nodded her agreement. "And my guess is that Bellatrix is with Voldemort. Most likely in her sister's house. That means that two of the three Horcruxes are most likely in Malfoy Manor. Now where do you think the Diadem is, Professor?"

"Very clever, child. Yes. I agree with you. Now as for someplace else that brings back a lot of memories of his childhood. We know that as soon as he was brought into the world, Merope, his mother, gave him up for adoption. He was in that orphanage until I came and got him out when he turned eleven. That is where I believe he hid the diadem. In Wool's Orphanage."

.ooOoo.

Very shortly after that, the Golden Trio made their way down the spiral staircase leading to the Headmistress's office. Their conversation with Dumbledore and the destruction of the locket left all three Gryffindors drained. Harry was holding the now dead locket in his palm and staring straight ahead. Hermione guessed that he was lost in thought about how he would tell Ginny that they were leaving the next morning to go on their search. Ron was just as quiet, no doubt thinking about his family. There was only one person Hermione was thinking about at the moment and she was desperate to go see him.

_Draco? _Hermione's voice was timid and sad. Less than a second later, he responded, even though it was past one in the morning.

_I'm in our room._

_I'll be there in a minute, _she replied.

"Ron? Harry?" Hermione began, too tired to put any strength behind her tone.

The boys turned to look at her. Harry just nodded, not needing her to explain. He was always able to read her like a book. "Go to him. We'll see you in the morning, 'Mione." Ron took a second, but nodded too.

Hermione threw her arms around the two boys and they wasted no time in wrapping their arms around her tightly. This may be the last time they would get to do this before they faced Voldemort. Before they left the safety of the castle and went on their hunt for the Horcruxes. They hugged for what felt like forever, not wanting to let go of each other. Hermione was the first to let go. She was eager to get to Draco.

"Goodnight," she whispered, offering a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Goodnight," they replied in unison. They smiled back, then turned toward Gryffindor Tower, while Hermione headed toward the Room of Requirement. Before she knew it, she was pacing in front of the wall, thinking _I need Draco Malfoy. I need Draco Malfoy. I need Draco Malfoy._ The door opened and Hermione shot inside. Draco was standing there in a white, long-sleeved uniform shirt, the sleeves rolled up revealing his Dark Mark, and black trousers. It looked like he hadn't even bothered changing after he left the Great Hall. He just headed straight to their room to wait for her.

Hermione let out a choked sob and rushed for him, throwing herself into his arms. Draco was surprised, but he caught her easily and crushed her against him. He lifted her bridal-style, but she still didn't let go of his neck as he walked her to the bed. He laid her down and slid in next to her, making sure to cover them both in the warm blanket. They just stared into each other's eyes, slate grey meeting chocolate.

Draco could see the pain in Hermione's eyes, but wasn't going to push her for details. If she wanted to tell him, she would. Sure enough, a second later, she opened her lips and took a breath.

"I'm leaving in the morning and I don't know when I'll see you again," she whispered, choking up on the last words, but she didn't cry and he admired her resolve.

"Okay," he responded. He wasn't sure what to say. He wasn't going to be the guy that begged the girl he was with not to leave him. Plus, he didn't even know why she was leaving. "Can you tell me why?" he asked.

"I really want to, Draco, but I can't. I'm sorry," she sighed, closing her eyes in frustration.

"That's okay," he replied. Hermione could tell he wasn't going to argue with her, and she appreciated it. It made things easier.

"Thank you, Draco," she whispered, lifting a hand and brushing his silvery blonde bangs off his face. "Will you just hold me tonight?" she asked shyly.

Draco didn't say anything, just pulled her closer to himself, wrapping his arms around her slender waist. She laid her head on his chest and realized that she'd never felt safer anywhere else.

"Goodnight, Draco," she whispered against his warm chest.

"Goodnight, Hermione," he whispered into her hair. Before they knew it, they both were asleep.

**Okay. So a little explanation. Yes, I understand that the Horcrux thing was a little rushed, but I did that on purpose and I think it actually worked out a lot better than I originally thought it would. I am rushing the Horcrux search and everything because that wasn't the main focus of my story. Not to mention that we're 15 chapters in now and I don't want to bore you all to death with another 15 chapters of just Horcrux searching. I would be absolutely devastated if I had to deal with 15 chapters of no Draco. Hah. So yea. I'm sorry if that disappoints some of you, but that's the only way I'll be able to end this story the way I want to and I hope you will all love it anyways. Please review and let me know what you guys think. I'll give all of you a delicious little virtual cookie if you do. Much love and thankfulness to all of you who've stuck with me this long.**

**-MBS**


	16. Chapter 16

**CHAPTER 16:**

**Hey guys. Aren't you so proud of me? It hasn't even been a week and I've already updated another chapter! Haha. Well this is kind of a shorter transitional chapter, and it's kind of sad, but I hope you enjoy it anyways. Enjoy!**

Hermione didn't know what had woken her, but she sighed and snuggled in closer to the warm body next to her, resting her head on his chest.

"Morning," she mumbled. She looked up into Draco's face as his silvery eyes opened and he smiled.

"Morning," Draco replied, his voice deeper and rougher, having just woken up. Hermione felt something flutter in her stomach in response and her eyes widened a bit.

Draco caught the look and didn't waste a second. He pulled Hermione up his body so they were face-to-face, hooked one pale hand in her curls, and brought his lips to hers.

Hermione's eyes fluttered shut. She hadn't been expecting this, but she certainly wasn't complaining. Then, without warning, reality hit her across the face. If things went wrong, this might be the last time she ever saw Draco. She felt her breath hitch and Draco felt it too. He pulled back from the kiss.

_Don't think about it right now. For the next hour it's just you and me. Forget that the world exists and just live in the moment._ Draco's voice was like a summer breeze through Hermione's worried thoughts. She sighed again and nodded, her eyes closing for a second. When they opened again, they were filled with a fire that Draco hadn't seen in a while. It almost made him nervous, but Malfoys don't get nervous.

Hermione crushed her lips back against Draco's soft mouth and Draco could feel all of her tumultuous emotions flooding through her plundering kiss. It was more than he could handle, and he responded just as hungrily.

Draco growled and grabbed Hermione's waist roughly, rolling them over so that he was on top of her, his weight pressing her into the soft mattress. Hermione shoved her hands up the back of Draco's shirt and ran her fingers over his scarred flesh. She gasped. Draco tensed. He forgot that she hadn't seen his back before and half expected her to shove him away because of how disgusting his skin felt. But Hermione was always surprising him; she never reacted the way he expected.

Hermione's fingers had stilled on their exploration of Draco's skin when she'd felt the raised flesh, but her curiosity had kicked in again once she got over her surprise. Her chocolate eyes were darker than usual when they met his molten silver gaze, but they weren't showing horror or disgust like Draco expected. She was looking at him questioningly, but Draco didn't know what the question was, that is, until he felt her fingers hook under the hem of his shirt and move it further up his back.

_May I? _she asked, her voice timid.

Draco hesitated. Feeling his scars and seeing them in their full glory were two totally different things. He knew they looked ten times worse than they felt. But he figured she should know the extent of what he'd been through so she knew what she was getting into with their relationship. He nodded, and he and Hermione both sat up at the same time, him kneeling on the bed between her smooth legs.

Hermione's eyes looked nervous but determined. Still looking him in the eye, she slowly lifted his shirt up and over his shoulders, then set it down beside him. Then she leaned forward and kissed him gently on the lips.

_Turn around? _It wasn't a command, but a question. He did as she asked and waited for her horrified gasp. He jumped when he felt her fingers brushing feather-light trails over his back and he figured she was tracing his scars. His eyes fluttered closed. This felt like a dream.

Hermione's first reaction at seeing the horrible raised scars on Draco's back was horror, but that was quickly replaced by sorrow, and finally, anger. She wanted to kill Lucius Malfoy for having done this to his son. How anyone could be so cruel was beyond her. There was no rhyme or reason behind the patterns on Draco's back. The marks varied in size and shape, but they were all caused by the same weapon, the cat-o-nine-tails. There were also circle-shaped welts at the ends of some of the lines, which Hermione guessed were caused by the silver balls attached to the ends of some of the braided leather cords. Some of the scars were older than the others and they extended from where the collar of Draco's shirt would rest all the way down into his trousers and onto the backs of his upper arms.

Hermione's eyes closed. She knew that Lucius had done this to Draco months ago, but she could only imagine the pain he had gone through and it hurt her. She leaned forward and kissed the scar closest to his neck. She planned on kissing every single one before she left this room today. She made it halfway across his left shoulder before he decided that he had other plans.

When Hermione had run her fingers so gently over his scars, it had shaken him up. But when he felt her warm breath hit his back before her lips met his flesh, he couldn't contain himself. He spun around and captured her lips with his. He growled low in his throat and lifted her until she was resting on his lap, her legs wrapped around his hips. She responded just as feverishly. Her tongue raided his mouth and she twined one small hand in his blonde locks while the other still traced small patterns on his back. He hooked his fingers under the hem of her shirt and pulled away for one second, his eyes asking her permission.

Hermione placed her hands on top of Draco's and helped him lift her shirt over her head. She was incredibly nervous, but she wanted him to see her too. She had never wanted another guy to see her for who she was, not even Viktor, but it was important to her that Draco did. Once her shirt was off, Hermione felt more revealed than she'd ever felt before, even though she was still wearing her bra and jeans.

Draco felt his breath catch in his throat. _You're beautiful, Hermione Granger._

Hermione felt her cheeks heat up and smiled. _As are you, Draco Malfoy._

He smiled back, then leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips. This kiss was deep and slow and incredibly sensual. Hermione felt her head spinning from lack of oxygen, but she couldn't bring herself to care, especially when Draco leaned her back onto the bed and rested on top of her again. His hands branded the soft skin of her torso and made their way slowly up to her throat and back down her ribs. When his lips replaced his hands, she felt her eyes close of their own accord and her breath leave her lungs.

Draco lips traced a trail from Hermione's collarbone, over to her shoulder, and down to her sternum. He hesitated a second before he brushed a soft kiss across the swell of her small right breast, then her left. He kissed his way down to her navel, then moved up each of her sides, tracing her ribs. When he reached her lips again, her warm breath breezed across his face before he pressed his lips to hers.

It was in that moment that Hermione realized she loved him. She couldn't imagine being without him. She didn't want to. He was her perfect match and she didn't want anyone else. But she knew she couldn't tell him that. It wasn't the right time, if there ever is a right time for things like that. Draco wasn't the type to respond well to proclamations of love, probably because he was the type to take it very seriously. No, when Hermione said it, it would be real to both of them. It was for this reason that she knew they couldn't finish what they'd started here today. If they did end up making love, she would make sure that they did it right.

_Draco? _Hermione's voice was so soft in his head that Draco almost didn't hear it. He'd just rested his head against Hermione's chest and he never wanted to move from this spot again.

_I know, _he replied. He figured Hermione wasn't ready to go all the way with him, and if he was honest with himself, he wasn't either. He wanted to do things right by her and by himself. _It's not the right time._

Hermione's inner voice sighed. _Thank you. For everything. For last night; for this morning. You've given me something good to look back on while I'm gone._

Draco looked up and met her eyes. _Any time. _He smirked, but Hermione knew it was a joke. He wasn't making fun of her, and she was incredibly grateful.

Hermione sighed. It was time for her to go. Harry and Ron would be waiting for her so they could go on their little Horcrux hunt. Hermione felt her heartbeat speed up in her chest and she realized that she was scared. No, she was absolutely terrified.

Draco felt Hermione's mood change from one of contentment to one of terror. She tried to conceal it, but fear that strong was a very hard emotion to hide. He looked up at her in concern, his pale brows drawing together.

Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm okay," she said aloud. "I just remembered that I have to leave today and it scares me…."

Draco shook his head. Hermione was like him in that she didn't admit her fears very easily. She must really be frightened to share that with him. He didn't really know what to say. He didn't know what she was leaving to do and he hated it when people said 'It'll be okay' because the fact of the matter is, you never know. You never know what will happen.

Draco sighed and got out of the bed, extending his hand to Hermione, who took it timidly. They were both still shirtless, so Draco picked hers up from where he'd placed it and held it out to her. She smiled shyly and took it, quickly putting it on. He didn't bother with his. He wasn't planning on leaving this room for a few more hours. He wanted to lay in their bed and inhale her scent until he was dizzy with it. But as he knew very well, things don't always go as planned. Just as he was walking Hermione to the door, a scalding pain tore over the Dark Mark on his left arm and he nearly dropped to the floor. Hermione hissed and grabbed her arm, feeling some of his pain through their connection. Once the pain faded to a dull throb, he looked up into Hermione's fearful eyes, and he knew that she knew what that meant.

"Voldemort is calling you, isn't he?" she asked.

"Yes. It looks like we're both leaving today," he replied, sighing.

.ooOoo.

Harry woke up to a dull throb in his scar. His scar had been throbbing on and off since Dumbledore had died. It felt as though Voldemort was happy about something. Like he was planning something big and he was excited about it, but Harry never really knew if what he was feeling was real or not. But it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Voldemort was planning something. They'd all known for months now that the war was coming.

Harry sat up and threw his feet over the edge of the four-poster bed, rubbing his blurry eyes, before putting on his glasses. He checked the time with his wand.

"Five o'clock," the breezy voice whispered. Harry grumbled to himself. What he wouldn't give to be able to go back to bed, wake up, and have all of this just be a dream. He still couldn't really believe that he, Hermione, and Ron would be leaving on their Horcrux search today.

Harry stepped out of bed and went to take a shower, hoping that would wash away some of the feeling of foreboding that lurked just under his skin.

When he was done with his shower, he went back to his room. It was 5:30 AM now, so none of the other boys were awake, especially since it was a Saturday. Dean and Seamus, his and Ron's roommates, were sleeping blissfully unaware of the events that would unfold today, and Harry envied them.

"Ron, wake up," Harry whispered, shaking his best friend. Ron muttered in his sleep and threw one long, freckled arm over his face.

"Come on, Ron. We have to go. Hermione's going to be back soon, and we need to leave before anyone sees us," Harry whispered, shaking his ginger best friend some more. Ron always was ridiculously difficult to wake up, but that seemed to do the trick.

"Ugh. Okay, okay. I'm up," he grunted, sitting up and running a hand through his long red hair, making it stand on end like Harry's always did.

"Grab your stuff. We should go wait in the common room for Hermione," Harry said, waving in the direction of Ron's backpack. They'd packed all of the stuff they'd need for their trip the night before when everyone else was sleeping.

"Yea. I'm going to take a quick shower and I'll meet you down there," Ron said, then headed toward the bathroom. That didn't bother Harry since Ron was like him in that they both took five minute showers.

"Alright, mate. See you downstairs," Harry agreed, then turned and left the room with his bag.

The hallway was dark, so he didn't see the person standing in front of him until he ran into them.

"Oof! Oh, sorry," Harry whispered, cursing his luck. He had really been hoping he wouldn't run into anyone this morning. He stopped fretting when the person lit their wand and he saw who he'd run into.

"Hey, Harry," Ginny whispered, her heart-shaped face sad.

"Ginny! Oh, what are you doing up?" he asked, surprised. He hadn't been able to tell her goodbye last night, because it had been too late, and she'd been in bed. He'd been okay with that, though, because goodbyes were always difficult, especially with the person you had feelings for.

"I figured you would be leaving this morning when I saw McGonagall pull you out of dinner last night. You didn't think you could escape without saying goodbye, did you?" she asked, teasingly.

Harry didn't think it would be possible this morning, but he smiled. Whenever Ginny was around, she had a way of making everything easier. "I guess not," he laughed.

Ginny smiled sweetly, but Harry could see the sadness on her features.

"Don't worry, Gin. It'll be okay," he said, taking her hands in his.

"Maybe," she replied. "I sincerely hope it will be."

Harry shook his head. He didn't know what to say, since she was right. You never knew what would happen.

Ginny looked up into Harry's emerald eyes with her icy blue ones. "I love you, Harry Potter. I've loved you since the first time I laid eyes on you, so you better come back to me, you hear me?" Harry could hear the seriousness in her voice. He was shocked. Ginny loved him? How? Why? He didn't understand, but he didn't think he had to. He hadn't realized it until she said she loved him, but the butterflies going crazy in his stomach told him all he needed to know.

"I love you too, Gin. I always will," Harry replied. He grabbed Ginny's shoulders and pulled her to him, crushing her against him and pressing his lips to hers.

Ginny's stomach was dancing inside of her. She was so happy and sad at the same time that she didn't know what to do with her emotions except for try to pour them out in her kiss. He loved her. Harry Potter actually loved HER, of all people. All she knew was that he better come back to her or she would haunt him into the afterlife.

"Come back to me, Harry," she said as soon as he let her come up for air.

Harry smiled and nodded.

"And bring my brother back in one piece, will you?" she added for good measure.

"I will," he replied, still smiling his goofy smile.

"Thanks. Goodbye, Harry," she said, holding his hand as she turned back toward her room. That was the hardest thing she ever had to do, walk away from him without knowing if she'd ever see him again.

"Goodbye, Gin. I love you," he said, holding her fingers tightly as she pulled away.

"I love you too, Harry," she said, then entered her room. He watched her walk away with mixed emotions. He was beyond ecstatic that Ginny Weasley was in love with him, but he was devastated that he had to leave her. But he was excited about what the future would bring for the two of them so long as he came back in one piece.

He smiled and headed for the stairs. As he rounded the corner of the stairwell, he saw that someone was sitting in the chair in front of the fireplace. It was Hermione.

"Hey, 'Mione," Harry greeted his other best friend.

Hermione turned around quickly in her seat. He could tell that she was feeling a lot at the moment, but there was no doubt in her features. Both she and Ron had decided that they wouldn't take no for an answer, and that no matter what Harry said, they were going with him. He hated putting his best friends in danger, but he knew that he needed them. They'd gotten through so many trials together that he couldn't imagine doing this without them. They meant the world to him.

"Hi, Harry," Hermione responded, smiling half-heartedly. Harry could tell that her mind was elsewhere, but he smiled back and sat down on the arm of the chair she was sitting in. "Where's Ron?" she asked.

"Showering," Harry replied. "He should be down in a sec."

Sure enough, they heard Ron's heavy footsteps walking down the stairwell a second later.

"You ready?" Harry asked Ron.

Ron nodded resolutely. "Let's go," he said, determination on his freckled features.

Harry nodded and stood up from the chair's arm, giving Hermione his hand and helping her out of the chair. Both Harry and Hermione picked up their bags from the floor. The Golden Trio left the Gryffindor common room together and didn't look back.

.ooOoo.

The three Gryffindors headed together towards McGonagall's office to talk to Dumbledore's portrait one last time before they left the castle. They reached the spiral staircase and rode it all the way up to the top, where the door waited and Ron knocked lightly.

_We're heading toward McGonagall's office. I'll see you there,_ Hermione said, knowing Draco would hear her. He'd headed straight to the headmistress's office to let her know about his Dark Mark and to talk about what he was going to do and say when he was in Voldemort's presence.

A second later, McGonagall opened the door to the room and looked at the Gryffindors flustered. "So everyone's leaving today?" McGonagall asked. Even though she didn't know the reason for the trip, she still knew the Trio was going to be leaving at some point.

Hermione, Harry, and Ron entered the room to find Draco standing nonchalantly by the desk. He had his hands crossed in front of his chest and a smirk on his face. The attitude was for Ron and Harry.

Harry and Ron glared daggers at Draco, but didn't do anything else towards the blonde. "Yes, Professor," Harry answered.

"Well, Mr. Malfoy is leaving shortly as well. It seems as if Voldemort is calling his followers to him. You know what this means, Mr. Potter. Whatever task Professor Dumbledore has given you, please complete it quickly. I feel as though we don't have much time left," McGonagall said, worry creasing her usually stern face.

"Yes, Professor. We'll do our best," Harry replied. He couldn't think of anything else to say.

McGonagall just nodded.

"Harry, the Sword is behind the desk. You'll need to take that with you," Professor Dumbledore's soft voice said from his spot next to the desk.

"Yes, Professor," Harry said as he went to grab the Sword. He had to pass Draco to get it and they both sneered at each other.

_Please stop it, Draco, _Hermione begged. She didn't want her last memories of him today to be of his sneer and glower. He stopped sneering, but it seemed like he couldn't help the look of contempt on his face. He truly hated Harry and Ron, but Hermione hoped that that could change eventually, that is, if they all made it out of this alive.

_I'm sorry, Hermione. I just wish I could say goodbye to you right now without these two meatheads in the way, _he replied. She could hear the scowl in his voice.

_We said goodbye in our room, _she reminded him, though she wanted nothing more than to throw herself in his arms and forget the world.

_I know, _he sighed.

Harry came back, Sword in hand, and held it out for Hermione to take. She'd shrunk all of their stuff and put it in her little backpack, including the other bags. She quickly shrunk the Sword as well, and placed it in the bag with everything else.

"Alright. You ready to go?" Harry asked Ron and Hermione. The two just nodded, and Harry gave a curt nod in response. Then, he turned to Professor McGonagall. "Goodbye, Professor. We'll see you again soon, I hope," he said.

"Stay safe, you three," she said, then added, "Protect each other."

"We will," they all responded.

Harry was the first to turn for the door, then Ron took Hermione's hand in his and led her away, too. She could feel Draco's growl in her head and it made her want to laugh. As if she could ever want anyone to hold her hand more than she wanted Draco to.

Hermione looked over her shoulder and Draco could feel the sadness emanating off her. "Goodbye," she said, and he knew she was talking to him, though her idiot friends thought she was talking to McGonagall.

_Until next time, _he replied. And he sincerely hoped there would be a next time.

**Sooo… What did you think? This was my first slightly racy scene and I hope I didn't royally screw it up. Haha. But yea, I haven't been getting very many reviews, so I'm not sure how you guys feel about the story anymore and it makes me sad. But I want to give a special thanks to those of you who did review last chapter (and for the whole story but that would be a ton to write so I'll just say the last chapter for right now. haha.). Thanks to… ****dg.17: ****who has stuck it out with me for a very long time and whose reviews I look forward to :D … ****IGOTEAMEDWARD****: thanks so much for the praise. I'm glad you liked it!... ****HinaHime2: ****I hope this update was quick enough! lol. … and ****pirateKitten11893:**** aww… thanks so much. I hope you like this one too. So yea… please review and let me know what you think. Thanks again so much for sticking with my little story. I love you guys a ton!**

**Love,**

**MBS**

Page | 4


	17. Chapter 17

**CHAPTER 17:**

_**Finally, another chapter. Thank you so much for waiting patiently. I hope you all enjoy…**_

Harry, Hermione, and Ron quickly and silently made their way through the hallways of Hogwarts and out the huge double doors of the entrance hall. It was still too early for anyone to see them leave. The sun was just beginning to peek through the trees of the Forbidden Forest, making the usually haunting and frightening woods look warm and slightly inviting.

Hermione almost would have preferred spending the next couple of weeks inside the Forest, rather than searching for the Horcruxes.

_Please, God, just allow us all to get out of this alive, _she prayed silently. Her worry about searching for the Horcruxes was nothing compared to the terror she felt about Draco leaving on Voldemort's command. Who knew what Voldemort would do to him? He'd ordered Lucius to whip his son almost to death before, and he was capable of much more atrocious things.

_Draco?_ Hermione sent out silently, as she continued trudging across the grounds with her best friends.

_I'm still here. McGonagall's just giving me a last minute lecture on what could happen if my cover slips. Like I don't already know, _he sighed. Hermione could hear the irritation in his thoughts.

_I don't want to think about that. I just need to hear your voice right now,_ she said, then she noticed the direction in which Harry was leading them. "The Whomping Willow, Harry?"

"Yea," Harry replied, looking back at Hermione. She could see the worry plain in his emerald eyes, and she wanted to soothe him. "We're pretty much the only ones that know about the passageway. We can sneak off the grounds easier this way."

That made sense. Hermione nodded, then realized that Draco had stopped talking. Right when she noticed this, he said, _I can tell when you're talking to someone when you leave the connection open. Strange._

Hermione wanted to laugh at the contemplativeness of his voice. _Could you hear what we were saying?_ she asked.

_I could hear you, but not who you were talking to. But I got an image of that tree that likes to hit people that get too close,_ he said.

_Wow. I guess that could come in handy, huh? Being a part of a conversation, without actually being in the conversation._

_Yea. It's different, _his inner voice laughed lightly. _So McGonagall's done with me. I'm leaving the school now._

Hermione's fear level went up ten notches. Draco could feel it. He said softly, _Don't worry. There's no way he can know anything. He still thinks I'm loyal to him and spying on Potter and the rest of the Order here at Hogwarts._

Hermione sighed out loud, but both Ron and Harry were too engrossed in their own thoughts to hear her. _Okay. That doesn't stop me from worrying, though. I just wish I could be with you, so I would know what's going on._

_Well, we do have this handy new telepathy thing. I figured I could keep you updated this way, _he teased.

Hermione wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. She couldn't remember what it felt like to not have him in her head and she didn't want to. She'd been so stupid to not want to go through with it, but she was so happy that she did, because they would still be with each other, even if they were across the world from each other. It made her feel a tiny bit more comfortable with the situation. _I guess you're right._

_Well, of course I am. Who did you think you were talking to? _he asked haughtily.

Hermione just smiled, both mentally and physically. Who knew she would be able to smile at a time like this, or that Draco Malfoy, of all people, would be the cause of it?

Harry and Ron drew to a stop, and Hermione followed suit. They'd reached the Whomping Willow. Its huge arms came to life, feeling their presence, and began swinging madly around, hoping to knock into anything that came too close to its guarded entrance.

"I guess we didn't really think about this beforehand, huh?" Ron asked, looking puzzled at how they would get through.

"Here. I'll do it," Hermione said, an idea popping into her head. "_Animagus mihi."_

Where Hermione had been standing a second before, there was now a sleek black panther with chocolate eyes. She twitched her long tail thoughtfully, calculating the best way to get through the tree's swinging limbs without getting hit. She stepped forward.

"Careful, 'Mione," Harry said, having full confidence in his friend's abilities.

With her enhanced vision, it was almost as if she was seeing everything in slow motion. She noticed the limbs taking aim at her before they got close enough to hit her and she quickly danced her way through the branches. Once she reached the trunk of the tree, she lifted a paw and pressed on an inconspicuous knob. The branches froze where they were and didn't move again.

Harry and Ron looked at her, still in her panther form, and nodded approvingly.

"Well done," Harry said, and both boys walked toward her. She stayed in her animagus form while they travelled through the hidden tunnel, on the off chance that there was something waiting for them at the end.

Being a panther had its perks. She could now see perfectly clear in the dark, musty hallway, and she would be able to smell anything off. She also had the most defense-capable form of the three, Ron being a horse, and Harry an eagle. The only bad thing was that she couldn't cast spells as a panther; she could only attack physically, which could still come in handy, as it was unexpected.

When they reached the end of the tunnel, the soft light shining through the dust mites floating in the air, casting enchanting swirling designs, Hermione knew there was no one in the Shrieking Shack. All was calm. She nudged the door open, and led the way through, then changed back into her human form. Harry and Ron quickly followed her out of the tunnel and into the dimly lit shack.

The three Gryffindor best friends looked at each other, the enormity of the now very real situation looming over their heads.

"So this is it," Harry acknowledged. "We're really going."

Hermione and Ron looked at him determinedly and nodded. "Yes, we are," said Hermione.

"So where to?" Harry asked.

"Wool's Orphanage," Hermione replied. "We should find the diadem and destroy it before we go to Malfoy Manor to look for the cup and the snake. I have a feeling that it will be easier to get to than the others."

Harry nodded his agreement, and Ron sighed. "Okay. Let's go," the red-head said.

"We'll Apparate to the base of Big Ben and go from there, okay?" Hermione asked, so they all knew their location. Tonks had spent many grueling hours with them over the summer teaching them to Apparate. Even though they didn't have their licenses, they knew what they were doing, and they most likely wouldn't splinch themselves.

"Okay," Harry agreed. Ron looked first at Harry, then at Hermione and nodded. Hermione grabbed their hands in hers, and they apparated at the same time, three loud cracks echoing off the dirty wooden walls of the Shrieking Shack.

.ooOoo.

Draco was irritated. It was just like life to screw him when he was getting too close to Hermione. Maybe it was a sign. Maybe this was fate's way of saying that he didn't deserve her. But he already knew that. She would always be too good for him, too pure and innocent to be tainted by him. His life had always had the bad habit of overflowing onto those around him.

Maybe this break from each other was what they needed. She would be safe if she was away from him, with her bloody heroic friends. Even if they were morons, Draco knew they would never let anything happen to Hermione. Blasted Gryffindor nobility.

Draco sighed as he exited the school grounds. He'd just walked down the main path and out the iron gates. _What does it matter if anybody sees me leaving? It's not like I'm ever coming back to this school anyway, _he thought to himself, making sure his and Hermione's connection was closed. He didn't want her to hear where his thoughts were leading him.

Even though he'd put on a great nonchalant act about being called by Voldemort, he truly was unnerved by it. Voldemort didn't call his followers unless it was absolutely necessary, so either Draco was in big trouble, or Voldemort was planning an attack soon and needed his Death Eaters there to help him plot. Either way, it didn't bode well for anybody, least of all Draco.

He followed the long path down from Hogwarts into Hogsmeade. It was too early for the shops to be open, and the streets were completely deserted. He liked it better that way. He didn't feel like seeing any naïve witches and wizards going about their normal, unburdened lives right now. It was truly incredible that they could just carry out their day-to-day lives without even realizing that a war was impending. Even if the public knew that Voldemort was back now, they still acted as if it was a rumour. They didn't truly understand the gravity of the situation. That thought irritated him even more. He wished more than anything that he and Hermione were just an ordinary wizarding couple, that they didn't know anything about the impending war or any of it. He would give just about anything for one day with her in that fantasy land.

But no matter how hard Draco wished, he knew it was impossible. He was Draco Malfoy, Death Eater and son of Voldemort's right-hand man, and she was Hermione Granger, Gryffindor Princess and the brains of the Golden Trio, Voldemort's main opposition. There truly was no hope for them at all.

Draco sighed once more and shook his head, then stepped into a dark alleyway, where he closed his eyes and allowed himself to think about their last morning together. He would never forget how she felt against his skin, how she tasted, and it would torment him and give him more pleasure than anything else he would ever experience. He only hoped that they would see each other again once this was over, that he could hold her and not have to worry about who would see.

With that private thought clear in his mind, Draco opened his eyes and pulled out his wand. Envisioning Malfoy Manor, he did as Snape taught him and apparated back home, where Merlin knew what awaited him.

.ooOoo.

Hermione hated the feeling of apparition, like she was being pulled through a slick tube. That feeling ended quickly, though, and the three Gryffindors found themselves staring out at a busy muggle street, cars whizzing by and horns honking. The streets were packed with people, many of them tourists staring in awe at the huge clock tower above their heads. Nobody noticed the seemingly innocuous young people who had just appeared out of thin air.

Hermione was slightly overwhelmed by the noise and the crowd. It surprised her, since she'd been raised in this world. It was strange how her seven years in the wizarding world made that world seem like the only reality. She always felt out of place in the muggle world now. She turned around to look at the boys. Harry looked like he was feeling the same kind of surprise as Hermione was. Ron's eyes were flitting every which way, like he was trying to take in everything he could. It was obvious that he'd never been to the center of muggle London before.

Hermione smiled. "Okay. Let's go," she said lightly, tugging on the hands she was still holding. The boys met her eyes and Ron's were wide in awe. He smiled broadly and nodded. Hermione giggled and shook her head.

The three Gryffindors quickly walked out of the alleyway and into the busy street, blending in with the crowd immediately.

"So how do we get to the Orphanage, Hermione? Do you know where it is exactly?" Ron asked, still gazing around at his surroundings like a child gazing at the presents under the tree on Christmas morning.

"It's only about a half mile away. I found the directions while we were still at Hogwarts," Hermione announced, looking for the street they needed to take down to Wool's Orphanage. "Aha. Right here. It's this way," she said, walking quickly.

They turned onto the street and realized that it was completely deserted, nothing like the area around Big Ben. The wind blew harshly across the road, caressing their faces like cold, bony fingers. Hermione shivered, pulling her peacoat tighter around herself. They passed by what seemed like hundreds of identical houses before they reached their next turn, Anbridge Alley.

The wind kicked up even more as they turned the corner and Hermione unconsciously huddled closer between Ron and Harry. This was more than just an average chilly English day. There was something distinctly sinister about the way the wind scratched the roofs of the broken down houses on the street, the way it hissed through the sparse trees. It was obvious that this neighborhood had been vacated years ago. The tiles were falling off the roofs and the shutters were hanging off the broken windows of some of the identical houses.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Ron whispered, the youthful joy that had been on his face earlier completely replaced by trepidation. "I feel like we're being watched, like we're not alone."

"Me too," Harry agreed, "But we need to keep going."

Hermione nodded her agreement and the three kept walking.

"There it is!" Hermione hissed as they rounded another corner and stopped short. There was no doubt that this building was Wool's Orphanage. The exterior of the building was in worse disrepair than the rest of the neighborhood. The huge, rusted iron gate that blocked the entrance to the courtyard was hanging on its hinges, and insidious dark green vines had twined their way around the metal bars, like choking fingers. The courtyard just behind the broken gate had been overgrown with all species of weeds. The most obvious were the thorny bushes lining the walkway up to the massive black door.

The building itself looked like a bomb had gone off inside of it. Some of the walls had bricks missing and a horribly charred surface, like it had caught on fire. All of the windows were missing. They reminded Hermione of sad, lidless eyes, staring out to warn others against entering.

"Well, it looks like we have no choice but to go in," Hermione said, her wide eyes staring back at the giant building nervously.

"Let's get this over with," Harry agreed, grabbing Hermione's hand tightly and leading her toward the rusted gate. It squealed open before they reached it and Hermione jumped. When nothing jumped out at them, they continued on, Ron following behind nervously. After the three had passed through the gate, it slammed shut of its own accord, effectively trapping them in.

"Great. Now what?" Ron asked, panic plain on his features.

Hermione took his hand in hers and tugged him toward the terrible building. "We need to find the Horcrux first, then we'll worry about getting out of here, okay?" she whispered.

Ron gulped, looked back at the gate, then nodded. "Okay."

Harry tugged on the hand he held and they continued up the path and through the now-open front door.

The interior of the building looked worse for wear than the outside. What had once been stark white wallpaper was now a grimy off-white and was hanging off of the walls like it had been torn by large clawed hands. The massive chandelier that had once lit up the grand entryway had fallen a long time ago and now lay haphazardly on the large front desk, its once beautiful crystals shattered on the floor, making it hard to take a step without treading on glass. The black and white marble floor had tiles curiously missing in places. There were three long hallways leading off the main entryway, each one leading into pitch blackness, too dark for the bright morning outside.

"Well isn't this a cozy little place?" Ron asked, disgruntled.

Hermione and Harry shook their heads. "We need to stay quiet," Hermione whispered. "We don't know if we're alone." Ron nodded. "Do you want to split up and each take a hallway?" she asked the two boys.

Harry shook his head vehemently. "No. We'll be safer together. I say we start with the hallway on the right and search from there."

Ron and Hermione nodded their agreement, but when Harry turned for the hallway, Hermione grabbed his arm to stop him. "Hold on. _Hominum Revelio_," she said quickly, flicking her wand. When nothing happened in response, she let go of his arm. "Nobody else is here."

"Good thinking," Harry replied, then continued walking toward the hallway on their right. They'd taken two steps into the darkened hallway before the light from the broken windows in the foyer completely disappeared and they were plunged into pitch blackness. The three Gryffindors quickly whipped out their wands and cast Lumos. The light from their wands did little to help the darkness, but they could at least see a few feet in front of them.

Each side of the hallway was lined with doors every ten feet or so. Most of the doors were open to reveal small dorm-like rooms, with two broken and stripped beds on either side of the room. The windows inside the rooms were boarded up tight so that no light was able to seep through from the outside world. This place reminded Hermione of a set from a horror movie. She shuddered, but continued walking between the boys.

"Where do you think the diadem is, Harry?" Ron whispered so quietly Harry almost didn't hear him, as they passed empty room after empty room.

"My guess is that it's in Voldemort's old dormitory. I remember Dumbledore showing me a memory of when he first met Tom Riddle here and he had a chest in his closet full of things he'd stolen from the other children. I believe it will be in there," Harry whispered back just as quietly.

All of a sudden Harry stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the room in front of him. They'd just turned a corner into a new hallway. "I don't know why, but I'm sure this is it. This is the room from Dumbledore's memory." The door to said room was closed and there was nothing significant about it.

"Uh, if you say so, Harry," Ron replied. He reached for the doorknob, but Hermione knocked his hand away.

"What do you think you're doing, Ronald?" Hermione asked, horrified. "There could be some horrible curse on this door and you didn't even hesitate to just reach out and touch it."

Ron looked surprised. He hadn't even thought of that possibility. He realized then just how much both he and Harry needed Hermione on this mission. She truly was the one that kept them all alive. "I'm an idiot," he mumbled. "Thank you for stopping me."

Hermione shook her head and turned her attention to the closed door. "Harry, try Parseltongue. It worked on the locket. Maybe it will work on this door too."

Harry nodded and opened his mouth. An inhuman hiss flowed from between his teeth and the three Gryffindors started when the door flew inward without hesitation.

"Well that was easier than I thought it would be," Hermione whispered, shocked.

The room was completely pitch black inside and not even the light from their wands could penetrate the darkness. Even in the darkness of the hallway, the three could see the inky blackness from the room reaching out with finger-like tendrils, like it was trying to grab something and drag it inside.

"Now what?" Harry asked, eyeing the room and the inky tendrils with trepidation.

"I hadn't really thought that far ahead," Hermione admitted. She was still shocked at how simple it had been to open the door. "I guess we don't really have a choice but to go inside, do we? If I hadn't been certain before that the diadem is in this room, I am now."

Ron looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "Have you lost your mind?" he asked, his abject horror at the idea of entering the room plain on his pale face.

"Well what else would you recommend, Ron?" she asked.

He seemed to contemplate that for a moment before he held up his wand and said, "Accio diadem." Nothing happened. Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. "Well it was worth a shot," he grumbled.

"Hermione's right. We have to go inside. I don't see any other choice," Harry whispered, steeling his resolve. "Stay behind me and keep your wands up."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Ron mumbled, placing himself behind Hermione automatically. He and Harry formed a kind of shield around her, and she doubted that it was a conscious thing for either of them.

The three stepped into the pitch black room and a deep aching cold immediately surrounded them. Hermione shivered involuntarily and Ron and Harry huddled closer to her front and back for warmth. The light from their wands literally only lit up about two inches in front of them. It was like they were buried underground with nothing but a lighter to see with.

Four steps into the room and a sense of dread overtook Hermione. Suddenly there were sounds like feet dragging across the cold tile floor all around them. Hermione knew immediately what was in this room with them. She'd heard that noise once before, what seemed like a life-time ago. She'd heard it in a dream, where those dragging footsteps had been chasing her down the long abandoned hallways of Hogwarts. Nexaddos.

Hermione couldn't control the horrified shriek that escaped her lips as Ron and Harry blocked her between their bodies. She knew there was no way they would be able to escape this. They were going to die.

_** I'm so sorry for how long this has taken, but I'm sure you're all used to it by now. But I sincerely hope it was worth the wait. I'm going to try my hardest to get the next chapter out as soon as I can, okay? I'd hate to leave you guys waiting too long, especially with a cliffy. lol. Thanks again for sticking with me. I hope when all is said and done, this story will be worth the wait.**_

_**Much love, **_

_**MBS**_


	18. Chapter 18

**CHAPTER 18:**

** Another chapter? Without making you wait for a month? Oh my goodness. lol. I couldn't leave you hanging for too long with that cliffy. Here you go…**

Suddenly, the light flared boldly from the tips of all three wands, like the spell that had shrouded this room in darkness before had been lifted. Hermione almost wished that the lights had stayed off. Before, she had guessed by the dragging footsteps that there were two or three Nexaddos in the room with them, but now she realized they were completely surrounded by the horrendous creatures.

Hermione got an idea. She thrust her hand up to her elbow in her charmed purse and pulled out their only hope for survival: Godric's sword. Harry snatched it out of her hand. If anyone was going to fight these freakish things, it was going to be him. A look passed between Ron and Harry, and Ron quickly threw Hermione into the only unblocked corner behind him, shielding her with his large body.

Even as all of this was going on, the Nexaddos didn't attack. They simply skittered around the sides of the room leering at the three intruders, malicious grins on their distorted faces. It was like they were waiting for something, and once that signal came, they were all done for.

Hermione took the opportunity to scan the room quickly.

"There," she whispered emphatically into Ron's ear. "There's the closet. Harry said the Horcrux would be in a chest in the closet, right?"

Ron nodded his agreement.

"Okay. You help Harry distract them and I'll go for the Horcrux," she whispered.

Ron turned and looked into her face sharply. "No. No way in hell. I won't leave you unprotected. There's got to be eight of these things in here and I'll bet you anything it's to protect the Horcrux. If they see you going for it, they'll kill you. I'm sure of it."

Hermione sighed. She knew he was right, but her own safety truly didn't matter in the grand scheme of things. If her death meant that the Horcrux would be destroyed, it was worth it. "I wasn't asking your permission, Ron. I'm going to do this. I just need you to go help Harry distract them," she said, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Ron glared at her over his shoulder, seeing that he wasn't going to win this fight. "Fine. But the moment things start to go wrong, I'll be by your side in an instant, do you hear me?"

"Then hope that that doesn't happen," Hermione whispered. Ron nodded, then immediately threw himself into the middle of the room, going back to back with Harry. This caught the attention of every Nexaddo in the room and Hermione quickly took the opportunity to cast a few disillusionment charms on herself. They wouldn't hide her completely, but she would blend into the wall like a kind of chameleon.

Hermione didn't hesitate to scurry across the room toward the closet. She hugged the wall for most of the way, unless she was avoiding a Nexaddo. Finally, she reached the open closet. Sure enough, there was the cracked and blackened chest sitting on the floor, right where Harry said it would be.

Hermione cast a quick spell to check if the chest was protected with other spells, but her wand didn't discover anything. _I guess Voldemort thought the Nexaddos would be enough to stop any potential intruder from discovering his secret, _she thought to herself. She quickly reached out one small hand to open the lid of the chest.

Before she could open the chest, something cold and hard slammed her hand out of the way. Hermione gasped and looked up into an almost human face. The Nexaddo was perched on the wall right above her head and his face was mere inches from hers. She had to stop herself from screaming.

"Now, I thought you were smarter than that. You seemed smart enough to know we would attack if you went for the chest, but it looks like I was wrong. Now you and your friends are going to have to die," the Nexaddo tsked, like he was sad for them.

Suddenly the Nexaddo lunged, knocking Hermione over and landing on top of her, its six human legs caging her in and its elongated tail hovering over her face. One strike down with that thing and she wouldn't have a face anymore. This time she did scream. When she looked over to where Harry and Ron were, she saw them attempting to fend off the other seven Nexaddos, with almost no luck.

Harry thrust the Sword upward, trying to impale the Nexaddo nearest to him and failing. They had all swarmed as soon as they realized Hermione was going for the chest. They were just too fast, but the Sword luckily seemed to discourage them a little. The Nexaddos walked circles around the two young men, trying to find a weak spot. Harry and Ron stood protecting each other's backs, Harry with the Sword and Ron with his wand.

When one long tail, sharp like a dagger, came toward Ron, he shouted, "Sectumsempra!" The Nexaddo shrieked in pain when his tail fell to the ground. Then all hell broke loose. The Nexaddos all pounced on the boys, trapping them against the ground like Hermione. The Sword and Ron's wand were flung out of the circle and Hermione could hear the two boys screaming.

Hermione panicked, still trapped under the huge body of the Nexaddo above her. "Now you get to watch your friends die," the Nexaddo cackled. As if to punctuate the point, Ron's long agonized scream pierced through the dense air in the room, and Hermione screamed in response. "No!" She realized she was crying.

_Hermione! You know what to do to get rid of these things. Come on! The spell from our dream, remember? Say the spell! _Draco's voice flooded through Hermione's mind. She didn't have time to appreciate that she must have accidentally left her mind open when the Nexaddos attacked.

Hermione opened her mouth and the words came flooding out.

"**Per mos superum, ego ordo vos dimitto. **

**Vos valeo hic haud magis. **

**Per nomen quicumque est bonus, ego terminus vestri reign obscurum.**

**Ego iam ordo vos morior.**

**Absum, everto, quod nunquam reverto."**

The Nexaddo above her seemed frozen during the spell, but when she finished, the sound of its shrieking echoed along with the sound of all of the others in the room. Then they all exploded into dust.

Hermione wasted no time getting up and running over to where Ron and Harry were laying on the ground. They were too still and thoughts of the worst came flooding through Hermione's mind. "No! No. Oh Merlin, no," she rasped as she threw herself down next to the boys. Ron looked like he'd taken the brunt of the attack. His face looked like someone had taken a cheese grater to it and he had a huge puncture wound in his shoulder and stomach. Harry's hands and arms had long gashes all around them and his face looked torn up too, but it looked like they hadn't impaled him yet. Hermione waved her wand over Harry and yelled, "Ennervate!" She breathed a sigh of relief when his emerald eyes opened.

Harry quickly sat up and took in the scene in front of him. It looked like all of the horrible skeletal scorpion things had disappeared and the room was filled with dust. Hermione was leaning over Ron on the floor. Harry finally realized how badly his best friend was wounded. "Oh Merlin!"

Hermione vanished Ron's shirt and leaned over his freckled torso, placing her wand over each of the wounds in turn and healing the damage done. She started with his abdominal wound and sighed in relief when the skin started to knit itself back together. If Ron was dead, this wouldn't work. When that was healed, she moved to his shoulder wound, then to his face, then to the rest of his body that had been cut up in the attack. When she was finished, she threw herself on his still-unconscious form and hugged him close. She pulled away quickly and whispered, "Ennervate."

Ron didn't know where he was or why he was freezing, but when he opened his eyes, everything came flooding back. He sat up quickly, coming face-to-face with Hermione. He searched the room for any sign of the Nexaddos, but couldn't find any.

"What happened to them?" he asked.

"They're gone now," she replied, then threw herself into his arms one more time. "Oh, Ron. I thought you were dead. Don't you ever do that to me again, do you hear me?" she scolded. Then she pulled away and looked at Harry. "Either of you," she elaborated. She reached over and pulled Harry into a hug as well.

They broke apart after a minute and stood up, eyes scanning the room one more time.

.ooOoo.

Draco made it through the gates of Hogwarts and the feeling of Apparition quickly overtook him. Before he knew it, he was standing before the familiar black gates of Malfoy Manor.

"Home sweet home," he whispered sarcastically, then placed one pale, long-fingered hand against the rough metal gate. He heard the lock clicking and the gate swung inward, recognizing Malfoy blood.

Draco trudged quietly up the long walk to the massive double doors leading to the entrance hall. The albino peacocks stared at him as he passed with their ruby-like eyes. He remembered chasing them as a child. _"Draco Malfoy!"_ his father's harsh voice would echo across their large estate. _"You stop that immediately. Malfoys do not disgrace themselves by chasing birds. You get in here this instant."_

Draco sighed imperceptibly and entered the foyer of Malfoy Manor. The sconces on the wall and the chandelier above his head were only half-lit, the way the Dark Lord liked them. It seemed like bright light hurt his snake-like eyes. However, the darkness did nothing to hinder Draco. He knew every room and passageway of this estate like the back of his hand, just like he knew he would find his father and the Dark Lord in Lucius Malfoy's office in the back of the house.

Draco didn't hesitate to head back to the office, knowing that the Dark Lord would find his hesitation highly suspicious. He walked quickly but silently down the long dark corridors to his father's office.

When Draco raised his hand to knock on the large office door, Lord Voldemort's voice called out from inside the room, "Come in, Draco." Draco bristled at that, but didn't show it. As much as he hated his father, this was his father's office and his father should be the one to determine who entered it. Draco hid his irritation very well and made sure to build up impenetrable walls around his mind.

"Yes, Master," Draco acknowledged, then opened the door wide and stepped in. Just as he'd suspected, the Dark Lord was sitting in the plush leather armchair behind Lucius' huge desk, his hands steepled under his chin and his elbows resting on the furnished wood. He looked relaxed as can be and the smile on his skeletal face was anything but welcoming.

Draco bowed deeply, then looked up. He saw that his father stood next to the fireplace on the far side of the room. His mother was nowhere to be found. "I'm sorry for the delay, My Lord. I had to sneak out of the castle undetected. All of the teachers have kept their eyes on me since the beginning of the school year and it's been nearly impossible to get anywhere without notice."

Voldemort nodded once, not taking his eyes off the pale boy in front of him. "Well, let's get to the point, shall we?" Voldemort hissed, a frightening smile crossing his slitted mouth. "I've received some… disturbing news from one of your fellow students. It seems that a young Miss Parkinson witnessed something rather interesting on the night of the Costume Ball."

Panic hit Draco hard in the chest, but he didn't show it. There was no way anyone could have seen him with Hermione. He'd been in costume the whole time they'd been in public. He was sure they'd been completely alone when he revealed himself in the hallway after he and Hermione had left early. There was no way. Pansy had to be making things up.

"And what was that, My Lord?" Draco asked, feigning innocence.

"Oh, I think you know exactly what she saw, Draco. Something involving a certain little mudblood Gryffindor."

Draco knew that he was going to have to be very persuasive to get out of this one in one piece. Draco gave a knowing smirk, hoping that Voldemort wouldn't notice his increased heartbeat. "Yes, My Lord. I've managed to convince the Mudblood Granger that I have feelings for her. She's incredibly close to Potter. Getting close to her, getting her to trust me, could work wonders for our cause."

Voldemort nodded thoughtfully. He smiled and stood up, pushing the chair back across the hardwood floor so that it screeched menacingly. He walked slowly around the desk, stroking the wand in his hand. "I see," he said, right before Draco fell to the floor, pain coursing through his veins.

Draco refused to cry out. He wouldn't give in, regardless of the agony he was feeling. Soon enough, the pain let up and Draco stood, panting.

"Now, I must admit that I don't believe that you're telling me the truth. You see, I searched Pansy's mind quite thoroughly and you looked unbelievably convincing when you were whispering sweet nothings to the Mudblood."

"I was acting, My Lord. She wasn't easy to win over. The only reason I'm putting on this disgusting façade is to get under her defenses. And it's worked; she trusts me now. She believes I'm on her side."

Lord Voldemort scoffed, his sharp yellowed teeth glistening in the flickering candlelight.

Draco felt the Dark Lord's mind probing at the walls of his own. He concentrated on blocking the memories and feelings he didn't want Voldemort to see. When Voldemort pulled up the memory of that night after the Ball, Draco replaced his feelings of bliss with feelings of loathing. He was confident in his Occlumency abilities; the Dark Lord wouldn't be able to tell that the memory had been tampered with.

"It is clear by your memories that the Mudblood filth has feelings for you. You've done well making her believe you were genuine. It will be amusing to see her face when you show her where your true allegiances lie."

Draco smirked. "Yes it will, My Lord. Thank you for your mercy. I assure you, you will not be disappointed."

.ooOoo.

Hermione walked over to the closet and hesitantly opened the chest. She had been right before about the Nexaddos being the only protection. Once open, all three Gryffindors' eyes were drawn to what lay within. There was a beautiful silver tiara, encrusted with diamonds and rubies and all other sorts of gemstones.

"This has got to be worth thousands of galleons," Ron whispered, in awe.

"I think having a bit of Voldemort's soul in it would bring its value down quite a bit," Harry said, reaching in and grabbing the diadem. He walked over to the Sword, which still lay on the ground where the Nexaddos had dropped it. Harry dropped the diadem on the floor and lifted the Sword above his head.

"Hermione," a cold, frightened voice whispered from where the diadem sat. "Hermione, think of all the good you could do with me. Think about all of the lives you could save if you wore me. I could give you limitless knowledge, Hermione. I know you crave that."

Hermione involuntarily took a step toward the diadem, but Ron held her back. But why would he hold her back? Its offer was so good, so pure. She could use the diadem to save lives. Hermione struggled against Ron's hold, but he was too strong. "Let go of me, Ron. Let go!"

"Do it, Harry," Ron ordered solemnly, still holding on to the struggling young woman.

"No!" Hermione screamed as the Sword flew downward in a perfect arc and slammed into the beautiful tiara on the ground. The diadem shrieked and smoked, then lay broken on the floor.

The spell wore off of Hermione as soon as the diadem was destroyed. "Ugh. How does he do that?" Hermione asked, and Ron rubbed her shoulders absently.

"He's persuasive," Harry responded. Ron snorted.

Hermione followed Harry and Ron down the dark and musty corridors and out the front door of Wool's Orphanage. The gates swung open as they approached.

"I guess once the diadem was destroyed, the spells on this place wore off," Ron stated.

"I guess so. There's nothing inside to protect anymore," Hermione agreed.

The three tired Gryffindors walked down the street shoulder to shoulder, Hermione in the middle. It seemed it was common practice for the boys to shield her between their bodies now, and she doubted that they realized it the majority of the time. They walked back out of the dingy deserted neighborhood and onto the main street, and were immediately sucked back into the crowd. As soon as they got to the alleyway they had apparated into, they stopped walking.

"So now where?" Harry asked. "I'm starving and tired. I think we should stop somewhere for the night so we can get some rest before tomorrow."

"Here, here!" Ron agreed wholeheartedly, throwing his hand up in a mock-toast.

Hermione giggled. This just seemed so obscure compared to what they had just gone through in that orphanage. "I agree. But I don't think we should go anywhere in the wizarding world. Too risky, in case one of his followers sees us not in school," she added.

Ron and Harry agreed. They settled on a nice little bed and breakfast that Hermione had visited with her parents a few summers ago right on the outskirts of London.

"Do you remember enough about it to Apparate there?" Harry asked.

"Who do you think you're talking to, Harry? Of course I do," Hermione teased, then she grabbed the boys' hands in hers. The feeling of being sucked through a straw disappeared quickly and they soon found themselves staring at a quaint little house surrounded by fields of flowers.

"Oh, I could stay here forever," Ron said, eyes wide.

Hermione laughed. Ron was so easily satisfied with everything. "Well, it's too bad we can't. We'll be here for a day, though. I think we should head off late tomorrow night."

Harry nodded his agreement. "Then we'll need to go to…"

"Malfoy Manor," Hermione finished for him. All three Gryffindors shivered.


	19. Chapter 19

**CHAPTER 19:**

**Goodness! Finally the plot bunnies show up again. I was beginning to think they'd gone extinct! Well you've all been waiting FOREVER for this chapter, so read on…**

Hermione, Ron, and Harry walked slowly up the dirt walkway to the front door of the little bed and breakfast. There were no cars out front, so it seemed like they would have the place to themselves for the night, which would be nice. None of them felt like putting on an act for a bunch of muggles tonight.

The front door jingled lightly when the three Gryffindors entered and the sound was soothing. The entrance was very cozy. There were pretty white flowered couches in one corner, with a small wooden table in front of them, and a small pile of magazines stacked neatly on top. Along the opposite wall was a tall receptionist desk with an ancient computer perfectly centered atop it. All of the walls were covered in pastel flowery wallpaper and had black and white pictures of the countryside lining them.

"Oh, hello there." The owner rushed into the room, and the trio saw that she was an older woman, her hair a soft gray and her skin wrinkled lightly around the eyes and mouth. She wasn't quite elderly, but she was getting close; she was probably sixty or so. "I wasn't expecting anyone tonight. What can I do for you?" she asked, smiling genuinely.

Hermione was comforted greatly by the gentleness of the woman. She didn't know how she would have responded if the woman had been unfriendly. "Hello. We were just looking for a room for the night. It's been a long day," she replied, smiling back as the three walked up to the counter.

"Certainly," the woman replied, typing into her computer, her nails clicking lightly in a well-practiced rhythm. "I have one room large enough for the three of you. There are two beds and a couch. Is that alright? Or would you like separate rooms?"

"Oh no, the one room is perfect. Thank you very much," Hermione responded quickly. She knew there was no way she could be by herself tonight after what they'd just gone through with the horrible nexaddos.

The woman nodded lightly, then typed some more into her computer.

Hermione noticed Ron staring, eyes wide and jaw slack, at the computer. She reached over and smacked his arm. He jolted out of his awestruck state and looked embarrassed. So it looked like he was following after his father's fascination with all things muggle after all. Hermione smiled to herself, shaking her head. Harry snorted quietly.

"All right. Everything is all set up. You'll be in the room up the stairs and at the end of the hallway," the woman instructed. Then she told Hermione how much it would cost and Hermione fished her muggle money out of her bottomless purse. "Have a nice night and breakfast will be served at eight o'clock," the owner smiled.

"Thank you," Hermione replied. The trio all smiled back, then turned and headed up the stairs and to their room for the night.

.ooOoo.

Draco walked determinedly up the three flights of stairs that led to his bedroom. His room was located in the eastern turret, which made it extremely easy to rise with the sun, seeing how his circular room had windows all around, and a balcony on which he could sit and rest while watching the sunrise. He didn't know why, but he'd always loved watching the sunrise. Maybe it was because that was the one moment of every day when he was able to escape the grip of his father's alliances. With the sunrise came a new day, which made Draco consider the highly unlikely possibility of his ever escaping this old nightmare. The sunrise made him hope, which was something he never allowed himself to do.

As Draco placed his hand on the doorknob to his room, a voice hissed right next to his ear, "Well look who we have here…"

Draco had to stop himself from jumping. He had lived his whole life with Voldemort and his minions in the house, so he'd learned very quickly to control his fear reflexes. They just made you vulnerable in said company. Draco turned around calmly, let a cool smirk fall into place on his face, then said politely, "Hello, Aunt Bella."

Bellatrix Lestrange could have been a beautiful woman if the insanity hadn't stolen her face from her. Her hair was as pitch black and shiny as a raven's wing and was piled high on her head in a messy jumble, her voluminous curls spilling down to her waist. Her eyes were the same glinting black color as her hair and were perfectly almond shaped, with long lush lashes framing them. Bellatrix smiled maniacally at Draco, her yellowed teeth reflecting the rottenness of her sick soul. It really was no wonder that Bellatrix was Lord Voldemort's favorite Death Eater.

"Ooooo…" she crooned, her smile becoming even more frightening. "And hello to you too, Nephew. And what brings you back to our cozy little castle so early, hmmm? Surely Hogwarts…" she spit the name out like it was poisonous, "hasn't released you children yet. You aren't planning on dropping out of school before you have the chance to graduate, are you? Oh no, your father wouldn't be happy with that decision. No, no, he wouldn't," she cackled.

Draco knew that Bellatrix knew that Draco was only here because he'd been summoned by Voldemort. But she liked to play games, so he would indulge her. "No, Aunt Bella. I'm here because the Dark Lord summoned me."

Bellatrix's eyes glinted again and she smiled what Draco assumed was meant to be a proud smile. "How well behaved you are. Coming when the Dark Lord beckons, even sneaking out of school to do his will… I'm so proud of you, my sweet sweet nephew." She clapped her hands as if to emphasize her point, then reached out and stroked one long claw down Draco's pale cheek.

"You will make the Dark Lord proud, won't you, Draco?" she asked, and Draco could hear that her tone had changed into something darker.

"Of course, Aunt Bella. It is my honor and duty to serve our Master," he replied. He'd had many an opportunity in this house to perfect his sickeningly devoted voice. It seemed to satisfy Bellatrix, because her leering smile was back in place.

"Of course you will, my sweet Draco. Of course you will. You will be joining us for dinner in an hour, won't you?"

"Yes, Aunt Bella," he agreed.

"Very good," she replied, then spun on her heel and headed for the staircase, her floor-length, torn, black lace ball gown dragging on the green carpeted floor behind her. Draco wondered briefly if it had been a gift from the Dark Lord, then realized he really didn't want to know.

Draco sighed under his breath, turned back toward his door, and made his way inside his room without further distraction. He closed the door soundly behind himself, then turned to look at his room. It was just as he'd left it: perfectly spotless and organized. He knew that the house elves had been dusting daily, making sure that their masters' house was spotless. The Malfoys would not put up with any sort of dust or grime in their living quarters.

He made his way across the room to his massive California king bed and fell face-first into the forest-green down comforter. As much as he hated this place he called home, he absolutely loved his bed. Draco closed his eyes and allowed himself to imagine that Hermione was lying there beside him, wrapped in his arms. That would truly make his bed the most comfortable place in the world.

_Draco? _Hermione's voice whispered through Draco's mind and he was surprised at her impeccable timing.

_Yes? _He replied.

_Harry, Ron, and I just got to where we're staying for the night. I just wanted to check if you were alright… I was worried about you._ She sounded timid.

_I'm fine. I just got into my room. Bellatrix waylaid me in the hallway. I'm going to have to head down to dinner soon. _

_It's so surreal, isn't it? You going back home to your family and the Death Eaters, and me going off on a mission with Harry and Ron? It's almost like this whole past year didn't happen. I find that I'm extremely glad that we decided to do the spell. I don't know what I would do if I couldn't speak to you at all while we were apart, if I didn't know what was happening to you…_

_It's good to know that I'm not the only one who feels that way, _he replied.

Hermione's thoughts were silent for a moment. Then, _Thank you for popping into my head back at the orphanage. We would probably be dead right now if you hadn't. I don't know why, but I froze. It was like my mind couldn't string together a comprehensible thought. I completely forgot about the spell. Thank you, Draco._

Draco was surprised by the fact that she was thanking him for saving her. He would've thought she would have expected it. There was no way he could've stood by and allowed something to happen to her when he had the ability to stop it. _Well, I couldn't allow our only hope at ending Voldemort to die at some pathetic monster's hand, now could I? _he asked.

Hermione's soft laugh echoed in his mind. _I suppose you couldn't._

The two were silent for a minute, then Draco added, _Are you safe now, Hermione?_

_What is safe these days, really? I don't think anyone can be truly safe until Voldemort is dead._ She sounded thoughtful.

_I guess that is true,_ he responded.

_But relatively, yes, I am safe. I'm sitting in a little bed and breakfast right now with Harry. Ron's in the shower cleaning off the blood from the nexaddo attack. Harry's next in line. We're just trying to figure out the next phase of our mission. _

Draco was surprised at the little spark of jealousy that appeared when Hermione mentioned her two roommates. It wasn't like he didn't already know they were staying together on their little adventure, but he had to admit, he didn't like it one bit. Especially the fact that Weasley and Potter would be taking showers in the same hotel room. He didn't trust the Gryffindor boys, especially not Weasley. He knew that Potter and the female Weasley were in a relationship, so he wasn't too worried about him trying anything. _I hope you know that if Weasley tries anything I will forcibly remove his penis_, he said.

Hermione had to stop herself from laughing aloud, which would surely confuse Harry, who was sitting next to her. _I think it might be a little bit hard to explain to Ron why Draco Malfoy is castrating him for making a move on me…_

_True. But I don't think I would care at that point,_ he replied. That realization startled him.

Hermione's response was extremely timid. _So does that mean that we're not going to keep this secret forever? _

Draco had honestly never thought about that before. What would happen if the both of them survived this war? Would he prefer to keep whatever you could call this thing they had going on between the two of them. That would probably kill Hermione, having to keep them secret from Potter and Weasley. And the thought of her friends finding out probably terrified her as well. Weasley was a blundering idiot after all, and would probably not react well to the idea of his worst enemy and his best friend together. But what about Draco's friends and family? Did he really care what they thought of him? If he had his way, his father would be dead by the time the war was won, so he wouldn't have to worry about that explosion, but what about his mother? He definitely cared about what she thought. He didn't really have anyone close enough in the friend department that their opinions would matter. _I tell you what, _he replied,_ if we both make it out of this war alive, I'll leave it up to you to decide whether we make this public or not. _

.ooOoo.

Hermione was floored. She couldn't believe what Draco just said. She'd just assumed that he'd always want to keep their relationship private. Honestly, that would be the easy way out of explaining everything to everyone. She knew that if she survived, she would basically be a celebrity, along with Harry and Ron. She didn't know what the wizarding public would do if they found out she was in a secret relationship with a known Death Eater, even if he was very obviously reformed and fighting secretly on the side of light. Screw the public, she thought to herself. _Would you really leave that up to me?_

_I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it, Hermione,_ he replied.

Hermione had to keep herself from smiling. Harry would be really confused, since he was sitting right next to her. _Thank you for that, Draco. It means a lot that you would do that for me._

_I would do just about anything for you, Hermione. Oh, I have to go down to dinner now. Can't keep the Dark Lord waiting_, he said sarcastically.

It filled Hermione with dread knowing that Draco was in the same house, would be in the same room, as Voldemort, but she knew that there was nothing either of them could do about it. So long as Voldemort believed Draco was on his side, he would be as safe as anyone could be in a room with the Dark Lord. She had to keep up a strong face for him. _Go. I'll be talking to you soon._

Hermione could feel his nod in her head, and then his presence was gone. She sighed under her breath.

"You've been doing that a lot lately," Harry's voice spoke from next to Hermione. They were both sitting on the bed, waiting for Ron to get out of the shower.

"Hmmm…?" Hermione asked.

"Staring off into space. Like something intense is going on in your head and you've disconnected from the world around you." He didn't sound judgmental, just observant.

Hermione blushed. She didn't realize he'd noticed. "Sorry, Harry. I'm just distracted."

"You don't need to be sorry…. It's him isn't it? That bloke from Hogwarts? What was his name? Wesley?"

Hermione was confused for a second, then remembered that was Draco's alias at the ball. "Yea. I'm just worried about him. It's hard when I don't know if he's safe or not."

"I wouldn't worry about it too much until the war actually starts. Hogwarts is still a safe place to be, especially with McGonagall as headmistress," he said soothingly.

Hermione had to laugh at the irony. Yes, Draco would probably be perfectly safe if he was at Hogwarts, but he wasn't. It wasn't like Hermione could say that to Harry.

"Yea, you're probably right," she replied, "And Ginny is safe too, you know." She'd noticed how Harry would stare off into space sometimes, too.

Harry met her gaze and smiled. "Yea. I'm sure she is."

Hermione placed her hand gently on top of Harry's and he laced their fingers together. The familiar gesture soothed them both. "I've been meaning to tell you how happy I am that the two of you are together again. It's like when you're apart, both of you are only half the person you are when you're together. You complete each other, as overused and clichéd as that sounds. It's true."

Harry smiled softly. "I love her, 'Mione. I can't imagine living without her now. It terrifies me that I can't be with her every moment, making sure she's okay."

Hermione nodded. "I know exactly how you feel."

Harry looked her deep in her eyes. "Do you love him, Hermione?"

Hermione was startled by the question, but she figured she could answer honestly. "Yea, I think I do," she sighed and shook her head.

"Is that a bad thing?" he asked.

"It could be."

Harry didn't question that. He just asked, "Does he love you back?"

Hermione thought about that. "I honestly don't know. I know he cares about me more than just about anyone else in his life. Does that mean he loves me? I don't think he knows, either."

Harry nodded. He couldn't understand how anyone could spend as much time with Hermione as this Wesley bloke and not love her. Maybe he just hadn't realized it yet. "Does he treat you right?" he asked.

Hermione smiled to herself. "He didn't use to. We didn't get along when we first met. But things changed. He treats me extremely well now," she laughed.

Harry smiled at her response. "That's good to hear. Otherwise, Ron and I would have to do something about him."

Hermione laughed again and hugged Harry. "Thanks for caring about me so much, Harry."

Harry scoffed. "Of course. It's my job. You're my sister, Hermione. I love you and I want to see you happy."

"I love you too, Harry."

.ooOoo.

Draco quickly dressed in his best dinner attire and headed down the three flights of stairs and multiple hallways that would take him to the main dining room. He took a deep breath before he quickly opened the door and stepped inside. Voldemort was sitting at the head of the extremely long dining table, where Draco's father usually sat. The rest of the Death Eaters, including his parents and Bellatrix, were seated around the rest of the table. The only seat left open was between his father and Bellatrix. He held his sigh in and sat in the seat.

"What took you so long?" Lucius hissed in Draco's ear.

Draco looked at his father dully. "I had to make myself presentable for the Dark Lord. I wouldn't want to put a smear on the Malfoy name by looking like I don't care about my appearance, now would I?" he asked.

Lucius seemed to understand the underlying message behind Draco's response, that their name was already smeared beyond repair. His face turned red and he looked like his wanted to hit Draco, but the Dark Lord stood up right at that moment. He didn't have to do anything to get every eye on him. His lipless mouth curved into what was supposed to be a smile. "I bet you're all wondering why I gathered the whole group together tonight."

There were murmurs of agreement around the table.

"I have decided that it is time for Hogwarts to fall. I have planned the attack for a week from today. I have heard from a very reliable source that Potter and his friends are no longer at the school. They've run away like cowards. This is the perfect time to attack. Without their "Chosen One" there to protect the Light and give them strength, they will be weak and disheartened. We will be able to crush them like the scum they are. Once Hogwarts falls, the Order will be eliminated, and the rest of the wizarding world will follow shortly after.

Cheers went up from around the table, and Draco played along, grinning and clapping with the rest of the Death Eaters, but really, he just felt sick. _Hermione_, he whispered into her mind. _Voldemort has planned his attack on Hogwarts for a week from today. He's planning on Potter not being there. Whatever you three are doing, you need to finish it quickly._

_I'll let McGonagall know. Thank you, Draco. Let me know when you're done with your meeting, okay?_

_I will_, he responded.

Once the cheering died down, the Dark Lord said, "Now let us feast to our impending victory," and food magically appeared on the table. It was obvious the house elves had gone all out for this gathering.

Draco ate and drank with the rest of the Death Eaters for the next hour, until they started clearing out. Then he excused himself and headed back up to his room. He took off his heavy dinner cloak and shoes and collapsed on his bed, sighing deeply. He had known that this was coming, but he hadn't expected it to happen so soon.

_Hermione?_

_Draco. Exactly what did Voldemort say?_ Hermione replied, all business.

_He said that he has planned to attack Hogwarts a week from today because Potter isn't there to give the Light courage. He says you've all run away, so it's the perfect time to attack. And he said that once Hogwarts falls, the Order will be next, and then the entire wizarding world. That was pretty much the whole thing._ Draco was extremely weary. The knowledge that the war would start in a week took a toll on his mind. He just wanted to sleep.

_Okay. I'll send my patronus to McGonagall now with that information. Thank you so much, Draco. _

_It's my job, remember? Hurry and send the message to McGonagall. They're going to need as much time to prepare as possible. And Potter will need to be there when the attack happens. Voldemort is right about him being the symbol the Light needs to keep up their morale. _

Hermione nodded, and Draco felt it. _Umm... speaking of us returning to Hogwarts, I'm going to tell you something you're not going to like…_

_Great disclaimer_, Draco replied warily.

_Draco, we're coming to Malfoy Manor tomorrow. There is something there that belongs to Voldemort that needs to be destroyed in order for him to be defeated._

Draco felt his heart turn to ice at the idea of Hermione here in this house full of Death Eaters. _No_, he responded simply.

_Yes, Draco. There is no other way for us to win this war. We have to come. It has to be destroyed._

_What is it? I'll destroy it, but you're not coming anywhere near this place_, Draco replied, his voice slick with fear and anger. He was furious that she would even think he'd allow her into his house while it was so dangerous. He refused to let her get herself killed doing something so stupid.

_You physically cannot destroy it. Only one of us can. We're coming whether you help us or not. It will just be a much more dangerous endeavor if we try to get in on our own. I'm not asking your permission, I'm asking for your help._

Draco was taken aback by her determination and tone of voice. He'd never heard her so steeled in her resolve before. It was a quality he both admired and hated at this moment. She hadn't really given him any choice.

Draco sighed both audibly and in his head. _Fine._

_All I need you to do is tell us a way to get into Malfoy Manor undetected. We have Harry's Invisibility Cloak._

Draco growled and made sure that Hermione could hear it. _The only way to get into the Manor without being dragged in by one of the Death Eaters is by house elf. They are the only ones who can get past the extensive wards undetected. For whatever reason, the magic they use to Apparate is shielded from the wards, protecting anyone they carry with them from detection. Do you just happen to have a house elf at your disposal?_ he asked, hoping the answer was 'no'.

He could feel Hermione's smile and he shook his head, admitting defeat.

_As a matter of fact, we do_, she replied. _Thank you, Draco. Now where is Bellatrix's room?_

_What?_ Draco was not expecting that question. _Why? Is the item you're looking for in her room?_

_Yes_, Hermione responded simply.

Draco growled again. But there was no way he'd just let the three Gryffindors search the entire manor on their own, so he said, _It's in the eastern turret, second floor from the top._ Draco's room was the topmost one.

_Thank you, Draco. Now that we know, we'll be able to get in and out quickly._

_I hope you're quick enough. Voldemort is least active in the early morning, but he doesn't sleep. Your best bet is to get here extremely early._

_We'll do that then_, Hermione replied in a soothing voice. She hated that she was upsetting Draco this much, but ultimately, she had to decide what was best for the world as a whole and not just for herself and Harry and Ron. _I promise I'll be as careful as I can, okay?_

_I just hope that's enough. I will do anything in my power to protect you._

_I know you would, Draco, but you need to keep your cover. If anything happens, which it won't, but just in case, you need to make sure you don't show that you're on our side. _

Draco scoffed. _Like hell. No. If you go and get yourselves caught, my cover will be screwed anyway. I won't let you go down while I just sit pretty, pretending I'm one of Voldemort's loyal dogs. I won't. You can't expect that of me._

Hermione knew she wouldn't get anywhere arguing that with Draco, and if she was completely honest, it warmed her to know that Draco would go so far as to blow his cover for her. _Okay, Draco. But we won't have to worry about that, since we won't get caught._

_You'd better be right about that, _Draco muttered.

.ooOoo.

The next morning, Hermione, Ron, and Harry awoke at five o'clock. They threw on their day clothes, threw the few things they had taken out back into Hermione's magically expanded purse, and left the bed and breakfast.

"Dobby!" Harry called to the empty morning outside.

Immediately, there was a loud 'crack' and the jittery house elf appeared. He was wearing overly large boots and had stockings on his arms and one of Hermione's knit caps on his little bald head.

"Harry Potter called Dobby?" he asked eagerly.

"Yes, Dobby. We need your help," Harry knelt down in front of the house elf.

Dobby nodded his head so fast, Hermione was sure his ears would leave welts on his cheeks where the hit them. "Dobby will do anything for Harry Potter and his friends."

"Dobby, we need you to get us all inside Malfoy Manor. Can you do that for us?" Harry asked.

For the first time, Dobby looked hesitant. "It's too dangerous, Harry Potter. Dobby would never forgive himself if Harry Potter or his friends got hurt." The small house elf was wringing his hands and looked extremely torn.

"We have no other choice, Dobby. If we don't get inside Malfoy Manor, we will never be able to defeat Voldemort and the wizarding world will live in terror forever. Headmistress McGonagall just found out from someone that he is planning on attacking Hogwarts in a week. We have to get into the Manor to stop him, Dobby, and you're our only hope."

Dobby looked like he was close to bursting into tears. "Oh how can Dobby choose between protecting Harry Potter and his friends and saving the wizarding world?" he bellowed.

"You know that the wizarding world is more important, Dobby, and with your help, we can all get in and out quickly and safely," Harry urged.

Dobby thought for a minute, then nodded slowly. "Alright. Dobby will do this for Harry Potter."

Harry smiled gently at the distraught elf. "Thank you so much, Dobby. When we win the war, you'll be seen as a hero by every witch and wizard in the world. I'm sure everyone will send you all kinds of lovely clothes."

Dobby smiled at the thought. "Dobby would like that a lot, Harry Potter. Alright. Grab hold of Dobby's hands and hold tight. Dobby will get you in and out of the horrible Manor."

"Thank you, Dobby," Hermione whispered, and took hold of one of his small outstretched hands. Ron grabbed her other hand and Harry grabbed Dobby's other hand.

The odd group disappeared with a loud 'crack'.

**As always, I'm sorry for the wait. I can't even begin to describe how insane my life has been the past couple months, but it's no excuse. But you finally have another chapter, so I'm quite glad about that. I'll be attempting to write the next chapter and get it posted soon, but no guarantees. Thank all of you so much for being so loyal to this story even though I fail at posting new chappies frequently. I love you all.**

**-MBS**


	20. Chapter 20

**CHAPTER 20:**

**Wow. Another chapter in like a week. Aren't you guys proud of me? Well I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my lovely two commentors from last chapter, Vee and dg17. Thanks guys. It means a lot that you bother to comment on my story, and I hope you guys like this chapter too…**

It was five o'clock in the morning and Draco was lying in bed with his eyes wide open. He was sure that the Golden Trio would be here any minute. Sure enough, there was a loud 'pop' and Draco jolted out of bed. His eyes had adjusted to the dark somewhat, so he could see the four black silhouettes standing in the corner of his room. He was glad he'd stayed fully dressed last night before he got in bed.

"Dobby, where are we?" Draco heard the idiot Weasley whisper loudly in the corner and he shook his head. He quietly got out of bed and waved his wand. The lights came on and he stood face-to-face with three scared Gryffindors and one confused house elf.

"It's a good thing the elf didn't drop you in a public room because you would have surely gotten caught with how loud your mouth is Weasley," he drawled.

Ron looked abashed for a second, then turned beet red. He looked like he was about to lunge for Draco, but Hermione and Harry both grabbed his arms at the same time.

"Don't be stupid, Ron. If you make noise, you'll get us all caught," Hermione whispered barely audibly.

"You should listen to the girl, Weasley," Draco smirked.

Hermione gave him a forced glare, then turned to Ron and Harry. "Okay, we need to get into Bellatrix's room, grab the Cup, and meet up with Dobby right back here as quickly as possible."

"She's one floor beneath us. I believe she's asleep in her room right now," Draco drawled, looking at his nails like he was bored, when secretly, his heart was attempting to break out of his chest for fear that Hermione would be caught. They were spending way too much time lingering here. They just needed to grab whatever Cup Hermione was talking about and leave.

Hermione nodded, her face steeled. "If she's in her room, the quietest person needs to go in and grab the Cup. I'll do it, and don't any of you argue with me."

"What?" all three boys hissed in unison. Ron and Harry raised their eyebrows at Draco, noticing his unusual concern.

"What?" he hissed. "If you think it's a good idea to send the one Bellatrix hates the most into her room, then that's fine by me. Bellatrix would most likely kill her on the spot, so I guess you wouldn't have to worry about her being caught and tortured," he drawled.

Hermione scowled at him, knowing he was trying to scare the Gryffindor boys enough that they wouldn't let her go.

"Well it's a good thing that I'm a big girl and can make my own decisions, now isn't it? I'm not asking for anyone's permission and if I have to, I'll bind all three of you up in a heartbeat. I'm going. I'm the quietest and the fastest. I'll be in and out before you know it," she said haughtily, reaching into her purse to retrieve the Invisibility Cloak.

"But…" both Harry and Ron said, again in unison.

Hermione looked up at their worried faces, and her face gentled. She reached out both hands and cupped both boys' faces. "I'll be okay. I promise," she whispered.

Harry was the first of the two boys to shake his head in defeat. He pulled Hermione against him, and whispered into her mane of curls, "You'd better be, 'Mione."

When she pulled away from Harry, she was caught in a crushing hug by Ron. She hugged him back, but she could hear an odd growling noise in the back of her mind, and when she looked over at Draco, she could see he was scowling. She had to stop herself from laughing.

Hermione closed her eyes as Ron hugged her and imagined throwing herself at Draco, wrapping her arms around him, and pulling his head down to hers in a scorching kiss. She shared that image with Draco.

Draco felt his mouth go dry at the image that had just appeared in his head. _You'd better come back to me safely, so you can make good on that, Granger._

_I will. And then we'll be one step closer to winning this war and not having to hide anymore_, Hermione replied, meeting Draco's eyes as she pulled away from Ron.

"I'll be back in no time. Just stay up here with Malfoy in case you're needed for something," she said gently. Hermione then spun around quickly so she wouldn't have to meet the three boys' eyes any longer. To be honest, she had no idea if she would make it back up here alive, but she knew she was their best hope.

Hermione threw on the Invisibility Cloak and disappeared from view, then quietly opened Draco's bedroom door and walked out into the darkened hallway. She tiptoed down one spiral staircase and stepped out onto the landing below. The door to Bellatrix's bedroom was to her left.

_She's paranoid, Hermione, so check her door for curses before you try to open it,_ Draco warned.

Hermione nodded. _I can't believe she would feel threatened enough to do that in her family members' house_, she replied, as she waved her wand in front of the door, mouthing a revealing spell. Sure enough, the door glowed with a dark red hue. Hermione pursed her lips, thinking.

_What kind of spell do you think it is, Draco? _

_I'm not certain, but I believe it's similar to the Cruciatus. If you touch the doorknob without disarming the curse, you will set off an alarm in Bellatrix's room while you're hit with a pain curse. She'll be on you in an instant._

Hermione nodded again. _Okay_, she replied simply. She searched the rather large information database that was her brain to find some sort of counter-spell for what Draco had just described. Suddenly, she remembered something they'd gone over in Advanced Ancient Runes at Hogwarts. She looked around the landing quickly, to make sure that no one was hiding in the shadows, then silently revealed her hand from under the cloak. She reached out and quickly traced a few runes in the air in front of the door, then did the revealing spell again. Her wand could no longer detect the earlier spell. _Thank Merlin for Advanced Ancient Runes and a photographic memory_.

Hermione hesitantly reached out for the doorknob and breathed a silent sigh of relief when she wasn't overcome with pain. She turned the knob more slowly than she'd ever turned a doorknob before, and gently pushed the door inward, praying that it wouldn't creak. It didn't.

She tiptoed inside the pitch black room, her eyes immediately shooting toward the corner that housed the bed. Her eyes adjusted enough that she could see that there was indeed a human-shaped lump on the bed that was quietly snoring. Hermione sighed in relief again, crossing her fingers that her luck would continue. She closed the door just enough that no one would realize it was actually open and looked around the room, trying to locate the goblet. She couldn't see anything from her position just inside the doorway. She waved her wand and mouthed, "Accio Goblet," and just as she expected, nothing came flying toward her hand.

Knowing that she was going to have to search the room until she found the Goblet, she shook her head, praying that she would make it out quickly and silently, then began her search. She headed to her left, looking on top of the armoire that rested there, but didn't see anything that looked like a goblet. Then she continued her walk. There was a small trunk lying on the floor beside the armoire, so she knelt down in front of it and silently opened it. No Goblet.

Hermione was beginning to worry a little more. She'd been in the room at least five minutes now, and every minute drew her closer to Bellatrix waking up. She was extremely thankful for the Cloak. She stopped where she was standing and noticed a small vanity on the other side of the bed. Her instincts drew her closer to it. She held her breath as she reached the desk. If Bellatrix had sat up in bed and reached out her arm in Hermione's direction, she would have been able to grab her, she was that close to the bed. She didn't want to breathe for fear of waking up the frightening Death Eater.

Hermione drew her eyes away from Bellatrix's sleeping form long enough to see that there was indeed a golden, gem-encrusted goblet sitting atop the desk. Hermione knew that it was what she had come for and instinctively reached out and grabbed the Goblet. The second her fingers touched the gold, she hissed through her teeth and drew her hand back. The Goblet had burned her fingers badly.

Right when the noise left Hermione's lips, Bellatrix jolted upright in bed, her wand pointed straight at Hermione's invisible form. "Lumos!" the older witch hissed, and light filled the room. Hermione just had time to pull her burnt hand back under the Cloak before the light came on.

Bellatrix's coal-black eyes darted back and forth crazily, searching for the source of the noise that had awakened her. After what seemed like hours for Hermione, Bellatrix seemed to come to the conclusion that she had imagined the noise. She gave one last suspicious look in Hermione's direction, then lay back down. However, she did not turn the light back off. She just closed her eyes, resting her head on the pillow.

_Hermione? I'm starting to believe that something is wrong. You're taking too long_, Draco's voice sounded frustrated.

_I'm okay. Just a close call. I see what I came for, and I'll be up in a minute, as soon as I'm sure she's asleep again. Don't worry. She doesn't know that I'm here._ She tried to sound reassuring, but she wasn't sure she succeeded.

_If you aren't up here in five minutes, I'm coming down for you_, he warned.

Hermione knew then just how worried he was. _That won't be necessary. I'll be up._

Hermione waited another three minutes, until she was sure that Bellatrix was at least in the beginning stages of sleep. She drew a silent breath and made up her mind. Her hand darted out from under the Cloak and drew the Goblet back under completely silently. She had to bite her lip hard to keep from screaming from the pain. She was sure that if she held the Goblet for much longer, she wouldn't have a hand anymore, that it would be burnt off.

The brunette Gryffindor rushed as quickly as she could toward the door without making a noise. However, when she opened the door, it released the creak it had been holding back before. Hermione just had time to throw herself out the door before the Cruciatus Curse came hurling at her invisible head.

Hermione sprinted up the stairs and threw Draco's door open just as she heard Bellatrix shriek angrily from her bedroom. She must have just discovered that the artifact that the Dark Lord had entrusted her with was missing.

Hermione's hand was still on fire when she burst into Draco's room, closing the door behind her. The Cloak had slipped off her head and was resting on her shoulders, exposing part of her body. "We need to go now!" she hissed to the two startled Gryffindor boys. Without a second thought, Dobby grabbed hold of the Golden Trio and the four disappeared with a 'crack'. Hermione just had a chance to meet Draco's stormy grey eyes before she disappeared.

.ooOoo.

The second Hermione disappeared from view, Draco threw himself back into his bed, whispering "Nox," and closed his eyes, pretending that he'd been asleep all along.

The light turned off just in time, because the next minute, Voldemort, Bellatrix, and Lucius burst into his room.

"Where are they, boy?" Voldemort yelled maniacally, and Draco sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes like he'd just awoken.

"I'm sorry, My Lord?" he asked, his voice tinged with confusion and his mind filled with fabricated dreams. All thought of the Golden Trio was tightly guarded behind Draco's impenetrable mental walls. Draco could feel the Dark Lord tearing through his mind, searching for anything that would give away that Draco had seen the intruders. His eyes flashed a brighter red when he couldn't find anything.

"Someone just broke into this house and stole something very precious from me, boy. You didn't hear or see anything?" Voldemort hissed, his voice still filled with suspicion.

Draco drew his face into a look of fierce anger that someone would get away with such a thing. "Of course not, My Lord. How could someone possibly get through our defenses? This Manor has more protection than Azkaban Prison," he responded.

"Well, obviously not, since someone was able to get in," Voldemort replied, his sharpened teeth bared and eyes burning.

"My Lord, is it possible that the culprit could still be here?" Lucius' voice quietly piped up from where he was standing.

Voldemort whirled around faster than humanly possible, and before he knew what hit him, Lucius was lying on the floor, screaming in pain. "Do not speak unless spoken to!" shrieked the Dark Lord.

After a minute, Voldemort ended the Cruciatus, and Lucius rose to his feet, his eyes facing the floor shamefully. "I'm very sorry, Master," replied the older Malfoy.

The Dark Lord looked disdainfully at Lucius, then seemed to consider Lucius' idea. "Yes, it is possible. But I highly doubt that the person who was able to outsmart your home's defenses would be stupid enough to linger," he said.

Lucius nodded, still facing the carpeted floor of Draco's bedroom.

Lord Voldemort grabbed Lucius' arm and touched his wand to the skull and snake tattoo that marred the perfect pale flesh, signaling that the Death Eaters needed to gather in the dining room.

The three older wizards and witch left the room immediately, and Draco quickly followed. There would be hell to pay for what the Golden Trio had just gotten away with. Draco only hoped that whatever Hermione took from Bellatrix's room was worth the consequences of stealing Voldemort's belongings from under his nose.

.ooOoo.

The second the Trio and Dobby reappeared beside a sandy beach, Hermione screamed in pain and threw the Goblet down on the ground hard. She fell to her knees, clutching her hand to her chest, tears now flowing freely down her cheeks. She observed the damage the Goblet had done, and, sure enough, there was a third degree burn covering most of her palm. She thought she could see muscle through the blackened flesh, and she felt herself get dizzy. Hermione leaned forward and heaved from the pain.

Harry and Ron were by Hermione's side in an instant.

Harry grabbed the wrist of her damaged hand and observed the seared flesh while Ron wrapped his arms around Hermione's shaking form, smoothing her hair and whispering soothing words in her ear.

Harry waved his wand above Hermione's hand and said a simple healing spell he'd learned at Hogwarts from his many trips to the Infirmary, but it didn't have any effect. He hadn't really expected it to, but it was still worth a shot. He didn't know what else to try. "What can we do, Hermione?" he asked quietly and calmly. He didn't want to stress her out anymore by revealing how panicked and guilty he felt.

Hermione pointed her good hand at her purse, which was lying on the ground a few feet away. She choked out, "Dittany," and Harry immediately began searching for the bottle that held the healing potion. Frustrated, he growled out, "Accio Dittany," and the petite glass bottle shot out of the bottomless bag and into his hand.

Harry took Hermione's hand back into his, holding it palm-up. He gave Hermione's face one worried look, then dropped a few drops of the liquid onto the horrendous burn. Hermione whimpered loudly in pain and Ron wrapped his arms even more tightly around the small shivering witch.

The skin of Hermione's palm began slowly knitting itself back together. The potion managed to seal up the wound enough that it wouldn't get infected, but Hermione's hand would forever be scarred to the point that it was possible she would never be able to use it fully again.

Sighing in relief that Hermione wouldn't be losing her hand, Harry leaned his head forward, touching his forehead with Hermione's. The wild-haired young woman met Harry's emerald eyes with her cocoa ones and whispered a shaky, "Thank you."

After a minute, Hermione was finally able to gain control of her breathing. The tears slowly stopped flowing. The pain in her hand had definitely not disappeared, but it had subsided to an intense throb, rather than a searing pain.

When she was sure she could get up without collapsing again, Hermione stood with Ron's help. The tall redhead had wrapped his arm firmly around her waist and Hermione was sure he would have tried to carry her to the small cottage she had just noticed on the cliff's edge, if she hadn't shot him a look. But no look in Hermione's facial range could make him take his arm away, and Hermione was secretly grateful for it.

Harry let Ron lead Hermione up the hill, while he stayed behind trying to puzzle a way to pick the Goblet up without burning himself. He ripped off a portion of the bottom half of his shirt and wrapped it around his hand, then reached down to pick up the offending object. Harry hissed as the Goblet burned straight through the thin fabric.

"Tricky little bugger, aren't you?" he growled in frustration. Harry then noticed that Hermione's purse was lying a meter away, and he knelt down. "Surely you have something useful in here, 'Mione," he whispered to himself as he reached his arm into her bag. Frankly, he was too afraid to just dump the purse's contents out on the ground, because he was sure Hermione had enough items to fill up an entire house loaded into the small bag. He dug around until his hand brushed cool metal, and he smiled. He grabbed the sword and pulled it out of the bag.

The second the Goblet detected the presence of the Sword of Gryffindor, it let loose a shriek so deafening that Harry was sure it would wake everyone unfortunate enough to be within a ten kilometer radius. Harry dropped to the ground, his hands covering his ears. The screaming didn't stop. So it seemed like Voldemort had decided to make this Horcrux attack rather than negotiate with anyone crazy enough to try to destroy it. But Harry knew he needed to destroy it.

The screaming was so loud and painful that Harry had a hard time standing up from the place he had dropped to the ground earlier. It took every ounce of will for him to make his muscles cooperate. He slowly lifted the Sword from the place he had dropped it earlier, and took the five excruciating steps that would allow him to be within striking distance of the Goblet. Harry wouldn't have believed it was possible, but the shrieking got even louder. Harry could feel a warm liquid trickling from his ears and nose, and he didn't want to believe that it was blood. He didn't dare use the energy to raise a hand to check.

"Holy Merlin, shut up!" he yelled, as he lifted the Sword with all his might and lunged, the enhanced metal of the Sword piercing the jewel-encrusted Goblet like it was butter. In that second, the screaming stopped, and Harry was thrown backward into a large tree. Everything went black.

.ooOoo.

"Harry? Harry, are you in there?"

Harry groaned at the loud worried voice that came from someplace above his throbbing head. "Ugh. Stop yelling," he mumbled, attempting to throw an arm over his head. He was so weak that his arm barely lifted off of whatever soft piece of furniture he was currently laying on.

_Wait a minute. Furniture? Where am I?_ he asked himself. He used all of the energy he could muster to crack open one jade-colored eye, and realized he was face-to-face with one worried ginger. "Where am I?" he asked.

"Shell Cottage, mate," Ron replied, still hovering worriedly.

"Bill and Fleur's place?" Harry asked, and Ron nodded.

Another worried face came into view. "How are you doing, Harry?" Hermione asked, and Harry could see that her hand was bandaged tightly with pristine white gauze.

Harry tried to lift his head, but was frustrated when he realized he couldn't. "I've been better. I can't really move," he replied.

"Oh. I didn't even think of that," Hermione replied, then placed her good hand under her best friend's head and placed it on the pillow she'd just nudged under it. "Is that better?" she clucked like a worried mother hen.

Harry couldn't help but crack a small smile. "Much," he responded. "Thanks. Where is the Horcrux?" he asked, finally remembering what had caused him to be in this state in the first place.

"You killed it, mate. I had just dropped Hermione off in here and headed back to the top of the hill when that horrible screaming started. I tried to make it down to you, but I couldn't get my muscles to cooperate. How in Merlin's trousers did you manage to move yourself enough to destroy it when even I was floored by the noise and you were so much closer to it?" Ron asked.

Harry didn't really understand how he had managed it, but said, "I had no other choice."

Ron and Hermione met each other's eyes for a second, then turned back to Harry and nodded, their eyes wide.

"I guess not," said Hermione.

"You really worried us, you know," Ron added. "When you finally killed the damn thing and I was able to reach you, you were lying on the ground unconscious and bleeding from your ears. I thought for a second that it had killed you."

"Looks like I lucked out," Harry replied, smiling reassuringly.

"Well, we'll let you rest," Hermione whispered, leaning down and brushing a soft kiss across Harry's sweat-dampened forehead. "You should be fine after a few hours of sleep. Voldemort's going to know very soon, if he doesn't already, that his precious Horcruxes have been discovered and destroyed, and we're going to have to head back to Hogwarts. You're going to need your energy. We'll be on our way to the school in the morning."

The realization that all of this would be over soon hit Harry like the Hogwarts Express. He nodded.

Hermione grabbed Ron's arm and pulled him out of the living room and into what Harry guessed was the kitchen. Harry would never admit it, but he really didn't want to be alone tonight.

.ooOoo.

Tom Riddle stood at the mouth of his secret cave, and immediately, he knew that someone else had been here. He was shaking in rage as he entered the hidden doorway and flew across the darkened lake. He landed on the platform right next to the large rock bowl, and what he saw, or rather what he didn't see, made him shriek in fury. Now he knew for certain that someone had discovered and stolen his precious Horcruxes.

He flew back to the entrance of the cave and out into the night, heading for the orphanage where he'd been abandoned at such a young age. Surely, whoever this thief was couldn't have figured out the locations of all of the fragments of his soul. Surely. For the first time in almost twenty years, Tom Marvolo Riddle felt the chilled fingers of fear trace their way up his spine. There would be hell to pay.

**Ooo… Voldy Moldy is quite unhappy that his secret has been discovered. What will he do now? Read on to find out… Oh, and please review. If you enjoy this story (and if you've read all 20 chapters, I'd hope you enjoy it), I'd really like to hear what you think. Your reviews keep me going. They're like food for my plot bunnies. Thanks!**

**Love,**

**MBS**


	21. Chapter 21

**CHAPTER 21:**

**I would apologize profusely about the lateness of this update, but that wouldn't help anything. Hopefully now that my insane 5-week-long chemistry summer school class is out, I will be updating more often. I love you guys and am so thankful for your patience with me. And thanks to my reviewers from last chapter. I hope all of you love this chapter. Alright, I'm done. Go ahead and read what you've been waiting so long for…**

The sun was barely kissing the horizon when Harry jolted out of sleep screaming. He clutched his forehead as Voldemort's fury flashed through his skull, making the skin around his scar feel like it was peeling off the bone.

"What is it, Harry?" Hermione exclaimed as she rushed to his side with Ron in tow, and reached out for him. Harry pulled away violently, snarling, his eyes flashing red for a second with the Dark Lord's fury before he was able to shove Voldemort's emotions back. Hermione pulled her hand back in shock. She'd seen Harry stuck in the Dark Lord's thoughts before, but she'd never seen Voldemort flash visibly through Harry like that. "Harry?" she whispered.

Harry groaned, putting his face into his hands and shaking his head jerkily, as if trying to physically shake the Dark Lord's fury out of his head. After a moment, he stopped shaking and looked up into the terrified eyes of his best friends. Hermione thanked Merlin that his eyes were back to their normal emerald hue. "I'm okay," he whispered. "Voldemort knows about the horcruxes and he's furious. He's going to gather his army and head to Hogwarts today. We need to leave now," he said.

"So this is it, huh?" A voice from the doorway startled the three young Gryffindors badly. They all jolted until they noticed Bill and Fleur on the opposite side of the room. Harry must have awoken them as well.

Harry sat up and shakily placed his legs on the floor. He tested his footing, and was thankful to realize that he was strong enough to stand. "Yes. It's time," he said simply.

"I vill alert ze ozzers," Fleur's thick French accent was even thicker when she was scared. She waved her wand and a silvery-white wisp quickly darted out of the end and through the wall. "Ze patronus iz ze quickest form of communication," she said simply, placing her body closer to her husband's. The tall redhead unconsciously wrapped his arms around the petite blonde. A minute later, Arthur Weasley's head appeared in the fireplace on the other side of the room.

"I've sent word to the rest of the Order. We will all be on our way to Hogwarts within the hour," the normally jovial man sounded strained and serious.

"Make it a half hour, Mr. Weasley. Voldemort is very angry and he will be there as soon as he gathers his followers," Harry said gently.

Arthur nodded. "A half hour then. We'll meet you at the school. I've alerted Minerva and she's altered the wards to allow only Order members into the gates."

"Alright. We'll see you there," Harry replied, and Arthur's head disappeared from the fire. Harry directed his gaze to the other occupants in the room and said, "Grab whatever you can't live without and let's go."

No one needed any more prompting, but did exactly as he said. Within two minutes, everyone had gathered a handful of items and met up again in the living room.

Harry turned to Hermione and whispered in her ear while the three Weasleys verified that they had everything they needed, "I'm not strong enough to Apparate by myself at the moment. Would you mind letting me side-along with you?"

"Of course I wouldn't mind," Hermione whispered back. She turned to look at the others and said, "Okay, time to go."

Everyone nodded, and the group disappeared with several loud 'cracks', leaving the room dark and empty.

.ooOoo.

Draco had never seen the Dark Lord so angry. He'd just returned from an hour-long journey, and the second he got into the main dining room that all of the Death Eaters were occupying, he began throwing glasses and plates full of food against the walls, causing them to shatter and their contents to leave toddler-like paintings on the previously immaculate walls. The Dark Lord was evil, yes, but he was typically so composed. Draco had certainly never seen him throw food around a room. If he'd had any respect left for the evil wizard (which he hadn't since the end of fifth year), he would have lost it in this moment.

Once the Dark Lord calmed down a bit, he addressed the room. "Change of plans. We leave for Hogwarts today. I will give you one hour to gather all of our forces and Apparate into Hogsmeade. Kill anyone who crosses your path."

Approximately forty voices saying, "Yes, My Lord" echoed loudly in the room, before an equal number of loud 'pop's followed. Draco's was one of the forty.

_We're coming to Hogwarts, Hermione. You have an hour._

.ooOoo.

The second Hermione's feet hit the long walkway leading up to the gates of Hogwarts, she was sprinting. She was happy to notice that the three Weasleys and Harry had the same idea. The group reached the gate in record time. Hermione reached out her hand and the gates swung inward at her touch. As soon as the last of the five Order members was through, they slammed closed again. _Thank Merlin McGonagall altered the wards._ The group continued sprinting up the path, through the front doors of Hogwarts, and into the Great Hall.

"Headmistress!" Harry exclaimed, breathless, when the group entered the large dining room and saw that McGonagall and many of the other professors were already gathered. McGonagall's face was drawn tighter than Hermione had ever seen it. Her brow was furrowed in concentration and worry, but she was just as held-together as she always was.

"Mr. Potter. Miss Granger. Mr. Weasley," she greeted her three students and nodded to Bill and Fleur. "What can you tell us?" she asked, all business.

"These past few weeks, Hermione, Ron, and myself were out searching for some things that would help us destroy Voldemort. I suppose since he already knows about it, it doesn't matter if we tell you now. Voldemort made six horcruxes. We've destroyed five of the six, and we suspect that the sixth is Nagini, Voldemort's snake. We had to break into Malfoy Manor to get to one of them and Voldemort almost caught us, but we escaped with Draco's help. Now Voldemort knows that five of his horcruxes have been destroyed, and he's furious. His anger woke me up from my sleep a few minutes ago. He's gathering his forces and coming here right now to kill us before we can kill Nagini and kill him. We alerted the Order and came straight here," Harry impressively stated in one breath.

The headmistress looked shell-shocked for a moment before she gathered her composure and nodded briskly, turning to the other professors in the room. "Okay. You heard the boy. The Dark Lord is on his way now. We've been preparing for this a long time and you know what to do. Filius, as soon as the rest of the Order gets here, you need to put the strongest charms you know of on the gate. It won't stop the Death Eaters, but it will delay them. Pomona, surround the grounds with devil's snare and venomous tentacula. Hopefully, those will distract them for a while. Horace, bring the potion bombs here into the Great Hall so they will be more accessible. Poppy, make sure everything is set up in the Infirmary. We are going to have a lot of wounded needing tending soon enough. Hagrid, contact Firenze. If he can get any of the other centaurs to join us, we can use all the help we can get. I will go and talk to the students. The ones that are seventeen and older will be allowed to fight if they wish. Otherwise, I will arrange for them to be filtered out of the school through the Shrieking Shack. Everybody understand? Good. Let's go," she ordered. The other professors rushed off to do as she said.

As quickly as the professors had gone, the rest of the Order arrived, including Remus and Tonks, the Weasleys, Mad-Eye, and Kingsley Shacklebolt. The next person through the doors shocked the three Gryffindors. Severus Snape.

"We got here as quickly as we could, Minerva," stated Arthur.

"Right on time, Arthur. The preparations are getting started. Filius is surrounding the school with protective charms as we speak. I've got to alert the students as to what is happening. I will need some of you to help me filter the underage ones and the ones that do not wish to fight out of the school. I believe that Aberforth is currently inside of the Shrieking Shack to help escort the students to King's Cross. I am hoping that Voldemort will be too busy here to pay any attention to them. Arthur, Harry, Ron, and Hermione, please go up to Gryffindor tower and talk to the students there to find out which of them is willing to stay and fight. Remus, Nymphadora, and Alastor, please go talk to the Hufflepuffs about staying. Bill and Fleur, please go to the Ravenclaws, and Kingsley and I will go speak with the Slytherins. I have no delusions that any of them will wish to stay and help our side. The rest of you, please stay here and keep watch. If anything seems out of the ordinary, alert the rest of us via patronus," she ordered, her lips thin. Everyone nodded and went to do as she had commanded.

Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Mr. Weasley ran quickly down the winding hallways and up the staircases until they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Is it true?" the Fat Lady cried in fear. "Is it true that the Dark Lord is coming?"

"Yes," Harry replied impatiently. "Let us in. We have to alert the others."

The Fat Lady nodded and opened, no more questions asked.

It was very early in the morning, so the majority of the students were still in their beds. Without needing prompting, Hermione rushed up the girls' staircase, and the three men headed up the boys' staircase. When Hermione entered her room, she turned on the lights and yelled, "Wake up! Go downstairs, now!" and sprinted out of the room to do the same in the next room. She ran back downstairs as soon as she'd woken all of the girls. It looked like Harry, Ron, and Arthur had done the same with the boys since they were already downstairs and the other Gryffindor boys were now blearily trudging down the staircase. The girls quickly followed suit. Everyone seemed to wake up more as soon as they saw the looks on the Golden Trio's faces.

As soon as the last person entered the room, Harry stood on a table and said loudly, "Voldemort is coming now." Loud gasps escaped from almost every mouth in the room. "We're evacuating everyone under the age of seventeen and all those who don't want to stay and fight. However, if you are of age and do want to fight, we could use your help. Everyone else, please follow Ron downstairs now and we'll get you out of the school."

Dennis Creevey's mousey voice rose up out of the middle of the crowd. "But I want to stay and fight! This is our war too, even if we are underage. Why shouldn't we have a choice to stay like the rest of you?" There was a loud grumble of agreement from the underage Gryffindors.

Harry's face turned stern. "I understand where you're coming from, but there will be no discussion. You will be evacuated if you are underage, even if we have to do it forcibly. We don't have time to argue this. Now go and follow Ron. He'll take you where you need to go."

The look on Harry's face paired with the threat of force worked surprisingly well for all but one of the underage Gryffindors. Ginny Weasley stood in the front of the now significantly less crowded room with her arms crossed firmly across her chest and her eyebrow raised.

Arthur growled at her, a surprising sound from the usually bubbly man. "Ginevra Weasley, get your butt down those stairs and follow your brother right this second. I will not have you here when Voldemort arrives."

Her father's aggressive tone did nothing but make Ginny stand even taller and her ice blue eyes pierce more deeply into her father's. "There is nothing, and I mean nothing, that you can do to make me leave this school right now, Dad. I will not stand idly by at home by myself, waiting to hear the news that one of my family or friends has been killed. I am staying here no matter what you say," she said firmly.

"Ginevra…" Arthur growled even more menacingly. "Do not make me drag you down there by force. We do not have time to argue about this."

"Try it, Dad. I love you, but I can assure you that you will not find dragging me down there by force nearly as easy as you think it will be. And since we don't have time to argue, don't argue with me. I'm not leaving, and that's final. You can use all the help you can get, remember?"

"Ginevra!"

"No, Dad! I'm not going. End of story. Now let's go down there and help everyone prepare for this war," she said, leaving no room for argument as she marched past her father, Harry, and Hermione to the back of the Fat Lady's portrait.

Arthur bristled one more time before he conceded defeat, grumbling under his breath, "Your mother is going to kill me."

Harry turned from the two Weasleys to see who else had decided to stay, and was shocked to find that every single of-age Gryffindor was standing before him, looking frightened but resolute. Harry's heart began to hurt looking at the faces of his friends standing before him. Neville Longbottom, Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan. Even Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown, along with many others. "You don't have to stay. No one will hold it against you if you go home to your families," Harry whispered.

"Yes we do, Harry. We do have to stay. Like Creevey said, this is our war too," Dean Thomas stated plainly. "None of our families will ever be safe if we don't kill Voldemort. We are all here to help with that."

"Let's go kick some Death Eater arse!" Seamus yelled.

Harry laughed as the rest of the room whooped and hollered their agreement, and he was filled with an overwhelming affection for these people that he'd spent seven years of his short life with. He wanted to protect them, but he knew that they were right. This was their fight too, and no one would ever be safe as long as Voldemort remained alive. He nodded his agreement, and said, "Let's go then."

Ginny led the pack of Gryffindors out into the hallway and down to the Great Hall. As they were walking out the portrait hole, Hermione pulled Harry aside and dug inside her bag for something. She pulled out the Sword of Gryffindor and handed it to him. "You'll need this to kill Nagini," she said, and he nodded his thanks. The two walked out of the portrait hole together.

Once the entered the Great Hall, Hermione was surprised to see how many people were there. She saw many of her fellow seventh years from all the houses except Slytherin. All of the professors had stayed behind, and all of the professors that had been given jobs when the Trio had arrived were now back in the Great Hall. The entire Order was in the large room, as well as Firenze the centaur. Hermione was most shocked to see that a large number of other centaurs were there as well. Twenty, if she'd counted correctly. All of the ghosts were in the room, including Peeves the poltergeist, who was gleefully holding what appeared to be smoking potion bottles. Hermione assumed those were the potion bombs that McGonagall had referred to earlier. There were at least one-hundred individuals crowding the large dining hall. Hermione felt her hopes rising. They might possibly have a chance against the Death Eaters after all.

.ooOoo.

Draco was currently in the middle of absolute mayhem. There were screams of horror and pain surrounding him along with flames and flashes of light as dark spells were shot in every direction. The Death Eaters had just entered Hogsmeade and were characteristically attacking everyone who was unfortunate enough to peak their heads out of the spaces they were occupying. No one was paying any attention to the masked blonde, so when Draco saw a young pale face peer out of the darkness of one of the alleyways ahead, he wordlessly cast a stunning spell on the little girl, so she would look like she was dead if any other Death Eater found her, and they would leave her 'lifeless' body alone. _Idiots. Why can't you just stay hidden?_ he thought to himself, rolling his eyes at the villagers' stupidity.

Draco continued trudging forward until he saw the gates of Hogwarts ahead.

_Hermione? We're in Hogsmeade_, Draco warned.

_We're as ready as we'll ever be. Please, Draco, stay as far away from here as possible. I don't know what the Order will do to the Death Eaters they catch._ Hermione's voice quavered in his mind.

_Understood. Is there anything I can say to get you to stay inside the castle and out of the battle? _he asked, already knowing the answer.

_No, Draco. There is nothing anyone could say that would make me do that._

Draco nodded in his mind. _Please be careful, Hermione. I… I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you. Don't be a martyr, okay? Protect yourself for me._

Hermione's gentle laugh tinkled through his mind, and he sighed, reveling in the sound. _I will do what I can, Draco._

Draco was distracted when there was a loud screech from the gates guarding Hogwarts. The Death Eaters had broken through the wards.

_We're through the gates,_ Draco warned.

.ooOoo.

"They're in!" Hermione announced from her place next to the window, pretending like she'd seen the Death Eaters, when she'd really been alerted by Draco.

"Alright, everyone! Listen up!" McGonagall yelled from the front of the room. "We've all known this day was coming for a very long time. This is your last chance to change your mind before the Death Eaters get here." Everyone stayed right where they were. "Alright. It's time for us to make our stand. Defend the castle from the inside until the Death Eaters break through. Don't hesitate to use any force necessary. We will win this. Evil will not win," she said sharply. Everyone roared at the same time, a threatening battle cry that echoed across the grounds.

All of the castle's occupants went to take their spots. The centaurs stampeded out of the Great Hall and up the stairs to perch themselves on the different towers, giving them optimum trajectory for their arrows, and the other witches and wizards scattered themselves throughout the school. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Ginny stayed in the Great Hall, along with many others.

_Watch out for arrows, Draco. Some centaurs have joined us and will be shooting from the towers_.

_Thanks_, was his reply.

She could feel his presence, feel him getting closer. Her nerves hummed with the thought that she would be seeing him again soon. Her body ached to be next to him, to touch him. She prayed that they would both survive this so she could do just that.

Suddenly, Hermione was jolted out of her thoughts by a voice that made her stomach tumble. Voldemort had found a way to project his voice to sound like it was inside of the school. "Send out the Potter boy and no one will get hurt. All I want is Potter. No one else has to die," the voice hissed.

Hermione looked over and saw that Harry had his eyes tightly shut. He looked like he was in pain, and Hermione knew that he was thinking about everyone dying. She rushed to his side.

"I know you are in there, Potter. Are you really going to let everyone else die for you? You could end this right now and spare all of your friends' lives if you come outside," Voldemort knew just where to hit Harry so it hurt.

"Harry, do not listen to him. Do you really think that he would spare anyone, even if you did as he asked?" Hermione whispered into her best friend's ear, clutching his shoulders like a vise.

Harry's eyes stayed closed tight for another minute, until he said, "No. I don't." When his eyes opened again, they glowed with a determined green fire. Hermione knew then that he wasn't going to do as Voldemort commanded. She breathed deeply in relief.

Suddenly, Ginny appeared at Harry's side and her presence stole Harry's attention. Her iceberg eyes stayed glued on Harry, but she addressed Hermione, "You talked some sense into him, then?"

Hermione smiled. "Yea. He's not going anywhere."

Harry nodded his agreement.

"Damn straight," Ginny growled before she pulled Harry to her and attacked his lips. When they came up for air, both she and Harry were flushed. "You'd better not die today, Harry Potter, because I fully intend to marry you someday, and you'd better not rob me of that opportunity," she stated, clutching the front of his shirt.

Harry's eyes were wide, understanding the threat in the fiery young woman's voice. "Yes, ma'am," he replied.

"Good." Ginny turned around and waltzed back to where she had been standing before, right next to a sputtering Ron.

Voldemort's snake-like hiss of a voice echoed inside the school's walls. "Five minutes, Potter. That's all you have before you sign your friends' death sentences."

Harry met Hermione's eyes and she could see the worry in them again. But she could also tell that he wasn't going to give in. If Voldemort wanted him, he'd have to come in and get him.

Before they realized it, the five minutes were up and Voldemort's voice hissed, "Time's up," and there was a horrendously loud 'boom' and all of the walls shook so hard that bits of dirt and brick rained down on the occupants of the Great Hall. This was it. The war was starting.

**It's about time, right? haha. 21 chapters down! Oh my goodness, the end is in sight. Let me know what you guys think. **

**Love,**

**MBS**


	22. Chapter 22

**Hey all, I really don't have any explanation for you guys as to why this chapter took me so long to write other than that my life has been a giant heaping spoonful of problems lately and my plot bunnies all died. But they have been resurrected and I hope you like the result. I know that I'm a little rough at writing battle scenes, but I tried and I think I'm pretty okay with the result. Okay, okay, now on to the good stuff….**

**CHAPTER 22:**

Draco had known they were coming, but when the three gargantuan giants appeared trampling their way through the Forbidden Forest, he had to admit, he was a little surprised. The only so-called giant that Draco had ever seen was the overgrown half-giant Hagrid, and while Hagrid was large, he wouldn't even come up to the knee-caps of these creatures.

Right when Voldemort ended his little countdown, the first giant tore a massive boulder out of the ground and hurled it at the wall of the castle. The sound it made when it hit the ancient stone building was deafening. Draco had to stop himself from covering his ears.

_Giants, Hermione. There are three of them. One is throwing boulders at the castle trying to break down the walls_, he stated since he wasn't sure if anyone inside the castle could see the overwhelming creatures.

The giants looked more animal than human. All three were male, as far as Draco could tell. They had long, red-brown hair that was covered in mud and hung in limp clumps around heads that were far too large for their colossal bodies. They were roughly the size of a four-story building, with arms that were too long and legs that were too short. Their dirt brown eyes sat low on their pudgy faces and their bottom jaws jutted out too far, revealing a row of yellowing serrated teeth. The only thing any of them wore was a loincloth that looked like it was made out of dragon skin, but Draco wasn't sure. Draco projected what he was seeing into Hermione's mind.

All the brunette said back was, _Merlin…_

.ooOoo.

"What the hell is that noise?" Harry shouted as crash after crash assaulted the eardrums of the Great Hall's occupants.

"Giants," Hermione said back. "Voldemort actually succeeded in recruiting giants!" She knew that Hagrid had attempted to win his kin over to their side, but the giants had apparently gotten a better offer from the Dark Lord.

Suddenly, one of the giants stepped into view of the window, and Hermione was able to see what it was doing. "It's picking up boulders and throwing them at the walls!" she shouted as another boulder crashed into the side of the school and more dust and stone sprayed down from the ceiling. "I don't know how much more of this the wall can take, Harry. We've got to do something!" Ceiling tiles were now beginning to split off from their neighbors, tumbling through the air, and shattering against the floor, causing the remaining students, Order members, and staff to dive for cover under nearby tables.

Hermione pressed herself tightly up against the wall to avoid the falling tiles and peeked another look out the window. She was relieved to see that the giants were finally within shooting range for the centaurs' bows, as long, extremely sharp arrows were now raining down from the tower below. Her relief was short-lived, however, because the arrows seemed to merely annoy the giants into pummeling the wall harder. Before she realized it, the wall gave a harsh wail and a long crack appeared. Another well-placed blow from one of the giants, and there would be no more wall separating the Dark from the Light.

"Run!" Harry screamed as he grabbed Hermione's arm and dragged her from the window. Everyone obeyed and suddenly there were fifty harried footsteps tearing out of the Great Hall and into the school's massive front entryway and the hallway leading from the Hall to the rest of the school. The second the last person was out of the Great Hall, the moment they'd all been dreading arrived. With one final 'bang' the wall gave way and their protection was gone.

The headmistress appeared next to Harry and Hermione at the front of the group and addressed the crowd one last time. "Stand your ground! This is it!"

The many witches and wizards gathered in the entryway wore the same look of grim determination on their faces and had their wands held out in front of them, preparing for the attack. Harry and Hermione moved to do the same, but McGonagall turned to them and said, "No! You two need to take Ginny and Ron and go to the back. It wouldn't do us any good if you stand out in the open like this! You'll get yourselves captured before we even have a chance at defeating them."

Harry opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione grabbed his arm and dragged him towards Ron and Ginny. McGonagall was right; they needed to protect Harry at all costs. The four Gryffindors tore through the throng and made it to the back right as tendrils of what looked like black smoke began winding in through the hole in the wall. Within seconds, the hole was blacked out from view and the darkness was inching closer. Hermione knew that pretty soon they wouldn't be able to see a thing without help from their wands.

"What the hell?" Harry uttered, his face screwed up in confusion.

"Voldemort has recruited a lot of dark creatures to his side that see better in the blackness," she replied simply, remembering Draco's words from their dream. Their dream, how long ago that seemed.

Harry looked at her, his eyebrows raised. "And how do you know what he's recruited and in what kind of lighting they see best?" he asked.

Hermione shrugged and said, "We'll talk about everything later. For now, let's focus on the trouble ahead." She gestured toward the thick swirling darkness that was now just beginning to caress the Great Hall's double-doors.

Harry nodded his agreement before turning back toward the doors with his wand raised high.

_Some of the Death Eaters are coming in_, Draco's voice whispered through Hermione's mind, and her heart jumped into her throat. _A few were hit by the arrows, but most of them got through._

_Please, Draco, stay away from this. Don't get caught up in the fight, because even though the Order knows you're on our side, none of the other students do. Don't get yourself killed_, she begged.

Draco replied, _I have to do what I have to do, Hermione. I have an act to put on. If the Dark Lord finds out I've turned traitor, he'll kill my mother to spite me. For now, I'm a Death Eater. But I am going to stay outside with the rest of the Death Eaters._

Hermione understood his reasoning, but she didn't want to. His safety meant more to her than just about anything else.

As soon as the darkness enveloped them, all hell broke loose. Hermione couldn't see anything but flashing lights and silhouettes as spells were shot back and forth. She ducked just in time to avoid a particularly ominous green spell that she was sure was the killing curse.

"We have to get someplace where we can see. We're just as likely to hit one of us as one of them in here," Harry spoke quietly, grabbing her arm and dragging her against the far wall. He must have dragged Ginny and Ron with him too, since they appeared in front of Hermione's face.

Suddenly, an idea came to Hermione. "Ron! Do you still have that deluminator that Dumbledore gave you for Christmas last year?" she asked hurriedly.

"Yea. I put it in your bag before we left. Why?" he replied, confused.

Hermione whipped open her purse and waved her wand over it, saying, "Accio deluminator!" The small silver object leapt out of the bottomless bag and into her waiting palm. "He's brilliant," she whispered to herself. Dumbledore was an absolute genius. He must have known that they would need this someday. Hermione placed her thumb on the top of the deluminator and pressed down hard. In a second, the room was filled with light as all of the wall sconces relit themselves. They could finally see. Hermione let loose one triumphant laugh before all four of the young Gryffindors threw themselves into the fray.

"Petrificus totalus! Incarcerous! Stupefy! Confundo! Expelliarmus!" Hermione shouted spells at an alarming rate, managing to hit the majority of her targets as she weaved and bobbed to avoid spells aimed for her. Her heart was racing as she literally fought for her life. There was a break in the crowd as she flung one Death Eater back into a wall with a particularly nasty Stupefy, and Hermione turned to find Harry cornered by Amycus and Alecto Carrow.

"Oh I don't think so," Hermione growled and an idea came to mind that made her smile menacingly. The next second there was a large black panther standing where Hermione once stood. The cat hissed once and lunged straight for Alecto's throat. Her teeth found their mark and the evil woman's shriek of terror quickly turned to a gurgle and then silence as the cat shook her vigorously, snapping the Death Eater's neck. Amycus screamed in outrage as he saw his sister's limp body fall to the cold stone with a thud and pointed his wand at the panther. Harry used the distraction to his advantage, petrifying the overwrought man. He fell to the ground next to his sister's lifeless body.

"You're brilliant, 'Mione," Harry said in awe, and Hermione purred once, then turned to observe the battle, still in her animagus form.

She was horrified to realize that there were already many bodies on the ground, some she was sure were dead, like Alecto Carrow. She knew that some of her classmates and friends were already injured or dead. She didn't think twice before leaping back into the battle. The second Hermione identified someone as a Death Eater, she leapt on them, clawing and biting until they stopped moving. She would do anything in her power to keep the rest of the people she cared about from getting hurt. She moved so quickly and so ferociously that most of the Death Eaters didn't see it coming before she was on them, and the ones who did didn't have time to react.

Soon enough, there were significantly fewer toxic green spells flying across the room. Hermione stopped her hunt when she noticed that the last of the Death Eaters inside the castle were cornered and no longer a threat. It didn't take long for the Order members to confiscate wands and petrify the remaining Death Eaters.

Hermione transformed back as soon as the room was back under Order control. McGonagall was by Hermione's side in an instant. "That was phenomenal, Miss Granger. I knew your animagus form would be an incredible asset for our side." There was a genuine, albeit strained, smile on the older woman's creased face. The headmistress then turned to address the rest of the room. "Well done. But the battle has not yet been won. There are many more Death Eaters still outside the castle walls and Voldemort himself is with them. Do not underestimate their power. Be quick and smart and we will finish this once and for all," she said sternly, then turned to lead the remainder of the Light out to what would be the most difficult fight of their lives.

Hermione, Ron, and Harry stood back as the others forced their way outside, dodging flashes of green light as the Death Eaters retaliated. McGonagall was right, this was not going to be an easy battle. All three of the Golden Trio were already covered in dirty cuts and bruises and their clothes looked worse for wear, but they were still in one piece. Hermione took a second to revel in that fact before she focused herself again.

"Okay. Harry, you need to transform and find Voldemort. Fly high enough above the battle that their spells won't reach you if anyone notices you. We have surprise on our side since no one knows you are an animagus. Once you locate Voldemort, you've found Nagini. I'm sure he wouldn't let her leave his side now that he knows we know about the horcruxes. She's the only one he has left, so he's sure to be watching over her very carefully. Once you find him, come back in here and we'll figure out what to do from there," Hermione ordered.

Harry was happy to oblige. He just wanted to end this thing once and for all. Even though he had kept himself from looking at the bodies littering the ground around them, he knew he would recognize some of the faces and that there would be great mourning after this was over. He wanted to cut back the number of people they would need to mourn. He nodded once, then transformed into the beautiful golden eagle, swooping quickly out the massive doors.

Hermione and Ron didn't have to wait long before Harry was back. He transformed back into his human form and breathed, "Voldemort is in the very back of the fight with Nagini and Bellatrix isn't far ahead. He's got the snake wrapped around his neck. He's arrogant enough to think that's enough protection for her," Harry scoffed. "But it's going to take a lot for us to get to the three of them. It's chaos outside. I don't know how we're going to get rid of those giants…"

"Leave that to us," a loud booming voice came from the other end of the hallway. The three startled Gryffindors looked up and saw the herd of centaurs coming back down from the Astronomy Tower where they had been perched at the onset of the invasion. The centaur speaking, Harry was surprised to realize, was Bane. Bane hated wizards, but he apparently hated Voldemort and his followers the most. Harry nodded his agreement and the centaurs rushed past, pulling out long swords from the sheaths around their waists, screaming loud battle cries like the ancient and magnificent warriors they were.

Harry focused his attention back to his two best friends. "Okay. So I think it best that you transform again, Hermione. That was incredible and I don't think the Death Eaters outside will be expecting it. We'll fight our way to the back, where Voldemort is. Please be careful," Harry said gently.

Hermione grabbed Harry and wrapped her thin arms around him tightly, and Ron quickly joined them. None of them knew whether this would be the last time they would get to hold each other close. "We all need to be careful," Hermione whispered, and the boys nodded their agreement. "Now let's go and finish this thing," she said sternly, releasing her grip on the boys. The three Gryffindors, the Golden Trio, marched their way towards the massive double doors and into the ensuing chaos outside.

_Where are you, Draco?_ Hermione asked as she quickly transformed into the panther and leapt onto the nearest Death Eater, digging her large claws into his back and her fangs into his throat. She released him only when she felt him sag like a rag doll.

_I'm by the Forbidden Forest. Stay away from here, Hermione. Greyback and Dolohov are over here as well and we're fighting with some of the Order._

Hermione's heart pumped faster at his words and she became all the more determined to end the battle. She needed to see Draco again in one piece. She needed to hold him and know he was safe and that nothing would ever separate or threaten them again.

_Be careful_, she whispered back into his mind.

_Ditto_, he responded.

Hermione had her sights on another Death Eater when she was stopped in her tracks by a massive foot crashing down right in front of her. She leapt backward and looked up at the mammoth body that almost crushed her. The giant was in the process of pulling down one of the many trees on the Hogwarts grounds. It didn't take more than a second for him to succeed at removing the tree from its home in the soil, and he quickly brandished it like a sword. It was then that Hermione noticed the herd of centaurs charging toward the giant, swords drawn. The giant swung the large tree across the ground, succeeding in throwing a few of the offending centaurs across the grounds. Hermione cringed in her cat body when she heard the horrible crunch of the centaurs' bones as they hit the ground. She definitely didn't want to be on the receiving end of one of those blows. But even though a few of their comrades were killed, Bane, Firenze, and the rest of the centaurs managed to get through the bumbling creature's defense and, quick as lightning in July, they drew their swords across the giant's Achilles tendons and he crashed to the ground with enough force to send the part of the castle closest to them crumbling in on itself.

Hermione didn't let herself be distracted for long before she made her way to the nearest Death Eater. She was shocked when the hooded figure turned around and she saw a face that strikingly resembled the man she loved. But this face was cold and cruel and there were permanent creases around the eyes and mouth that came from decades of sneering and hatred. Hermione was so startled that she lost concentration and lost control of her animagus form. In a second, there was a small brunette standing in the place of the large black cat.

Lucius Malfoy's eyes flashed absolute hatred when he recognized the young woman standing before him. He bared his teeth at her in a sneer so familiar to her it shook her to the bone and brought her mind back to the days when Draco used to give her that look. This dropped her guard just long enough that she was sure she projected what she was seeing to Draco. Her fears were confirmed when Draco's voice yelled frantically in her head, _Run! _For a moment, Hermione was afraid of the man standing before her, but then another image popped into her mind, that of Draco's scarred back, and she was no longer afraid at all. She was furious.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Potter's little mudblood whore," Lucius cackled. "Come to offer yourself up to me like you did my son, did you?"

Hermione's eyes narrowed dangerously as she pointed her wand at the tall blonde man. Hermione heard Draco's voice again in her head, saying, _I'm coming. Don't do anything stupid._

_Oh don't worry, Draco. I'm going to enjoy this. He's not going to get away with what he did to you. What he's done to so many others_, she responded coolly. She smirked and felt her power well up within her from her fury at this evil man.

"Do you want to know the truth, Lucius?" Hermione asked calmly as they began circling each other, wands drawn and pointing at each other's chests.

Lucius sneered even more. "And what would that be, whore? That you're shagging Potter? I already knew that."

Hermione smirked and Lucius' sneer faltered. He wasn't used to little girls not being afraid of him. He wasn't used to anyone not being afraid of him. "No. Your son and I have been seeing each other for months now. We've slept in the same bed. We've held and kissed each other. I've put my mudblood paws all over your pureblood son and he hasn't minded one bit," she said antagonistically.

Lucius saw red and stepped closer to the young brunette. "Draco told us the truth. He told us that he's been playing games with you from the start. He doesn't care about you at all, you filthy little slut," he hissed.

Hermione stepped closer as well so that they were circling each other very closely now. She leaned in a little and whispered, still smirking, "You want to know something else, Lucius? Your son bonded his mind and power with mine. I will forever be a part of him now because he wants me to be."

Lucius hissed furiously and lunged for Hermione, just as she knew he would do, and she took that moment of uncontrolled fury and shouted, "Expelliarmus!" Lucius' wand flew from his fingers and his eyes opened wide in shock. Hermione hissed, "Sectumsempra," a spell she never thought she'd ever use on anyone, and she watched as the evil blonde who'd caused so much pain and suffering for so many people fell to the ground. She watched as his blood flowed from his body, and though she didn't feel joy as the life left his eyes, she felt a sort of peace. No longer would Lucius Malfoy be around to hurt anyone.

.ooOoo.

Draco stopped in his tracks as the scene unfolded in his mind. He watched as Hermione and his father circled each other. He listened as they taunted each other. He panicked when Hermione told him about their bond. Then he celebrated as he watched he father bleed out, never to harm another soul. He got just what he deserved. Draco just wished he'd been the one to do it.

_Draco?_ Hermione's timid voice echoed in his head.

_He's gone then?_ He asked, already knowing the answer but wanting to hear it all the same.

_He's gone_, was her simple reply.

_Thank you_, he whispered, and he could feel her smile as a response.

Draco turned his attention back to where Greyback and Dolohov were fighting some new Order members and joined in the fight, using simple stunning and petrifying spells under the rouse that he was keeping his victims alive so they could be prisoners of war later.

Draco felt content even as he dodged and fired spells. He would never have to worry about his father again. He and his mother were finally free, thanks to Hermione.

**Soooo… what did you think? Was it good? Bad (hopefully not)? As I said, I'm a little rough at writing battle scenes since I've never done them before and they are quite difficult to write, but I hope I made you all proud. Please let me know in a review! And I've decided to set myself up an author page on Facebook. It's under Myblondeslytherin Fanfiction. If you like my story, you should go add me on there! That would be awesome. We'll see how it works out. Thanks for sticking by me. I know how incredibly frustrating it can be to wait FOREVER for a new chapter to come out if you like a story, so I love you all for your patience. And you won't have very more to wait for since the story is almost done! Wow. Well anyway, I'll let you all get on with your lives now. I love you all,**

**-MBS**


	23. Chapter 23

**Oh my goodness, guys. I know it's been forever and that you've probably forgotten everything that's happened since the last chapter, but here it is… CHAPTER 23!**__**I'm super excited about this one. I hope you all enjoy…**

**CHAPTER 23:**

Hermione didn't allow herself time to celebrate Lucius' death. She would have time to do that later, provided she survived this war. She just turned back into the panther and pounced on the nearest Death Eater, sunk her teeth in, and waited until the black hooded figure went limp. It was almost robotic. She felt no remorse for ridding the world of these horrible wizards, but she didn't feel any joy either.

Hermione quickly leapt from Death Eater to Death Eater, sneaking up behind them as they were locked in battle with a member of the Light, and ended them quickly and effectively, freeing up their opponent to also move on to the nearest Death Eater. Before any of them knew it, the sun was starting to make its way down past the treetops, darkening the school grounds and making it easier for Hermione's black coat to blend into the shadows. This was great for the Light, but Hermione felt a chill go down her spine at the knowledge that it would also be great for whatever other dark creatures Voldemort had hidden up his sleeve. They needed to end this before it got dark enough for Voldemort's hounds to come out and hunt.

Hermione released the newest limp body that hung from her jaws and took a moment to look around. There were significantly fewer dark hooded figures standing upright on the field engaged in battle, but there were also significantly fewer Light figures. Hermione didn't let that sink in. She needed to keep her head if they were going to win this. She switched her gaze over to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, where she knew Voldemort, Bellatrix, and Nagini were camped last. She could only make out one pale figure now. This was it. They needed to go after Nagini now.

Hermione turned and looked frantically for Harry and Ron, doubting she would find them near her since the battlefield was so large, but she was in luck. They were right on the edge of the battle, roughly forty meters away, both entirely focused on the slim, wild-haired figure in front of them. Spells were flying at turbo speed in both directions and Hermione instantly knew what was happening. "No!" she yelled. She needed to get there before Bellatrix managed to land one of her wild and deadly spells. Hermione turned back into the panther mid-sprint and made it across those forty yards at a pace that would make an Olympic sprinter proud.

Hermione leapt through the air, her vice-like jaws open and ready to grab the woman's neck, but Bellatrix turned just in time to notice her and duck out of the way. The crazy woman cackled maniacally and shouted "Crucio!" The curse hit Hermione square in the chest and she felt molten lava flood through her veins. The absolute agony caused her to lose concentration on both her animagus form and her mental block, and the cat's quivering body transformed into the brunette's quivering body at the same moment that Draco's panicked voice shouted, _Hermione!_ in her head.

"Oooo… look at what the kitty cat dragged in.…Meow!" Bellatrix taunted, slinking over to Hermione's thrashing body, while holding the curse and putting more and more power into it. Hermione managed to squeeze one eye open for a second and realized that Ron and Harry had been intercepted by Dolohov and Rainier as they were trying to make it over to where she lay in Bellatrix's grasp. She felt the panic well up inside of her and couldn't hold back her screams anymore. It seemed like a full hour before something happened that distracted Bellatrix and gave Hermione a split second of reprieve. She was in so much pain that she could barely hear a woman's voice say, "Not my daughter, you bitch!" and then the white hot lava was gone and Hermione was free.

Hermione was still too weak to stand or even sit up, but she could open her eyes again, and what she saw made her heart leap into her throat in panic and in awe. Bellatrix was locked in battle with a middle-aged, slightly-frumpy, ginger-haired woman, a woman Hermione knew very well, Molly Weasley. Hermione searched frantically in that area to make sure Ginny was okay, but the smaller red-head was nowhere to be found. It took a second for her to realize that Molly was referring to Hermione when she said 'Not my daughter.' Hermione's heart swelled with gratitude and love for the woman who, even though Hermione had a mother she loved very much, had always been a second mother of sorts to Hermione.

Hermione was surprised when she felt two sets of hands grab her under her arms and hoist her up, but stopped herself from struggling when she realized the hands belonged to Ron and Harry. She looked over to where they'd been fighting and saw Dolohov and Rainier lying face-down in the grass. She didn't ask any questions, but turned her attention back to where Molly and Bellatrix were throwing curses back and forth at each other.

Ron gasped when he realized that his mother was fighting one of the most frightening and powerful witches in the world. He didn't want to call out to his mother for fear of distracting her.

Suddenly, Molly's eyes did dart over to where the Golden Trio stood, Ron and Harry holding Hermione up, and something inside of her changed. It was like a wildfire had erupted behind her irises, and her curses came much faster than they had come before. She fired spell after spell at the deranged witch before her and Bellatrix's eyes widened slightly in surprise, the light of alarm visible in them for a split second before she let out another one of her horrible cackles. Bellatrix matched Molly's speed as she sang, "Oh, what fun I will have slaughtering one by one your whole blood-traitor family and their friends." The fire behind Molly's eyes raged even brighter as she whispered menacingly, "You will not _touch_ my family." With that, she fired one last spell and made her mark. Bellatrix stood dumbfounded for a moment before her face changed to terror. The skin on her whole body seemed to be constricting around her, crushing her like a vice until suddenly, she exploded into dust. Molly said simply, "Bitch," then turned to where Ron, Harry, and Hermione stood staring in amazement.

Molly ran as fast as she could over to the Trio and placed her warm motherly hands on Hermione's cheeks. "Are you alright, dear?" she asked, which made Hermione take inventory of her injuries. She tried to stand on her own, but was irritated when she realized that she didn't have the strength. "No, Molly. I can't stand," she replied.

"That's alright, dear. You were under that curse for a long time. I'm surprised you aren't even worse for wear. Let's get you up to the Infirmary. Poppy can get you back to normal," Molly said in her motherly way.

Hermione shook her head vigorously. "No way. I'm staying out here until this war is over. There's no way I'm sitting up there in safety while all of the people I care about are down here risking their lives," she said vehemently.

Molly's eyes widened at the firmness in the small brunette's tone. "Are you sure about this? You will be incredibly vulnerable if you're unable to walk," she said.

"I'm sure," Hermione replied firmly. Molly nodded, then turned and ran toward where the rest of the fighting was concentrated.

_Hermione Jean Granger, you are being incredibly pigheaded and stupid right now_, an angry voice hissed in her mind. _You will just get all of your friends killed out here if they're constantly worrying about you and can't focus on defending themselves. You're completely useless right now. Get your stubborn Gryffindor ass upstairs and into the Infirmary now_, the angry voice ordered.

Hermione felt both happy and annoyed at the same time, a truly strange combination of feelings. She was happy because Draco's anger showed how much he cared about her and her well-being, and she was annoyed because she never liked being ordered around by anyone. _You know me better than that, Draco. I'm not leaving this field_, she said simply.

Hermione ignored the angry growl in her head and turned to her two best friends. "It's time to go get Nagini. I have an idea. Harry, you turn into your animagus form and grab the snake off of Voldemort's shoulders while Ron and I distract him. Ron, I need you to turn into your animagus form and I'll ride on your back. I'll have the Sword of Gryffindor strapped to my back. Harry, once you separate Nagini from Voldemort, you and Ron and I will trade places. We'll go after the snake and you defeat Voldemort once and for all. I wish we could help you, but the prophecy says it has to be you."

Ron and Harry stood staring at Hermione in surprise. They hadn't been expecting such a well-thought-out battle plan. Once they got over their surprise, they both nodded in unison. It was a pretty decent plan.

"Okay," Hermione breathed, closing her eyes one last time and praying that they would make it out alive, "Let's go."

Harry quickly turned into the golden eagle and Ron followed suit, turning into the magnificent red horse. Ron quickly put his nose under Hermione's abdomen so she wouldn't fall, then knelt down, nosing her onto his back. There was no saddle or bridle or anything, so she had to rely on her balance and hand strength. She weaved her hands into Ron's long, thick, red mane and breathed deep, trying to summon all the strength she could into her legs so she could clamp onto the horse's thick back. Harry took off into the air and circled around over the side of the Forbidden Forest so that he could sneak up from behind Voldemort and the snake. "I'm ready," Hermione whispered into Ron's ear, and the horse tossed his head back in acknowledgement. Ron started slowly, trotting lightly to make sure Hermione wouldn't fall off his back, but once he realized that she would be fine, he took off in a gallop. They made it across the field to within fifteen meters of where Voldemort stood with Nagini in front of the Forbidden Forest.

Hermione's heart threatened to leap out of her throat as she stared into the blood-red eyes of the most evil man on the planet. She wanted more than anything to run away and hide in a corner, but Harry needed her courage for this plan to work.

Voldemort didn't seem alarmed in the least at the slim wild-haired brunette staring him down from the back of the large red horse. "Ah. Miss Granger. How very nice to see you alive and well after your run-in with Lucius. I must say that you saved me the trouble of killing him after this battle myself. He was starting to become more trouble than he was worth," the alabaster-skinned monster said jovially as the slits in his nose widened and he smiled largely, revealing serrated fangs. The snake draped across his shoulders hissed in Hermione's direction.

"I didn't do it for you, _Tom_," Hermione said, deliberately trying to rile him up. It worked.

"How dare you show me such disrespect, Mudblood!" Voldemort shrieked loudly, brandishing his wand and flicking it in Hermione's direction. Ron's quick reaction was all that kept her from receiving that horrible green light straight into her chest. He leapt out of the way as she grabbed her wand from her back pocket with one hand and clenched the other tightly in his mane. "Stupefy!" she yelled, knowing it would do nothing but distract the monster.

Voldemort laughed hysterically at her pathetic attempt. "You think you could stand a chance in battle against me, Mudblood?" He laughed even harder. "Okay, then. I will humor you. Your death will be quick, girl."

Ron leapt out of the way of another horrible green light coming straight for Hermione's heart. Hermione shrieked out, "Sectumsempra!" Voldemort merely leaned out of the way, smiling viciously.

Voldemort twitched his wand again, not needing to say a word, and Ron dodged another killing curse. Hermione shouted, "Crucio!" and watched as the light flew past the Dark Lord and blasted an arm off the tree behind him.

"Very good, my girl," the Dark Lord said, clapping. "If your blood weren't so worthless, I might have room for you in my ranks after all."

The words made Hermione sick. She threw another, "Stupefy!" and the Dark Lord's face turned angry again.

"You should know by now, Mudblood, that your pathetic _Light_ spells are completely useless against me. If you're going to show your face in battle against an opponent such as myself, you should fight with the only useful spells there are…" Voldemort hissed, then twitched his wand in time to each of his next words. "Crucio! Imperio! Avada Kedavra!"

This time the green light was much stronger and faster than the last few and Ron had to roll sideways like a trip-horse in order to prevent Hermione from getting hit square in the face. By some miracle, she managed to get her leg out from under him in time to not have it crushed by his massive body weight. Right at that moment, Hermione looked over at the Dark Lord from her spot on the ground and said, "You lose, Tom." She took advantage of the Dark Lord's surprise and flicked her wand and the feather-light charm hit its mark. The next second found the 200 pound snake, Nagini, being lifted off Voldemort's shoulders, thrashing violently in the outstretched claws of the golden eagle.

Ron quickly turned back into human form while Voldemort was distracted watching his beloved pet being carried away, grabbed Hermione's hand and Apparated over to where the snake fell to the ground. The bird was gone when they arrived, and Hermione noticed that the human Harry was now standing in front of Voldemort, taunting him, making him choose between protecting his pet and destroying the one person that could destroy him. He chose the latter and Ron and Hermione had to tear their eyes away from Voldemort and Harry so they could destroy the snake.

Hermione still couldn't stand, so she unsheathed the sword from behind her back and handed it to Ron as the enraged snake reared up and hissed at them from five meters away. Ron's face took on a look of grim determination as he took slow step after step toward the angry reptile.

Hermione felt helpless as she sat on the ground watching one of her best friends circle the incredibly deadly snake. She'd seen what this snake could do, and she knew that it had killed people before without issue.

Nagini lunged angrily at the bulky red-head, but he was just out of her grasp. Ron continued circling her, and she whipped her head around from her coiled position to watch him. She would wait until he got close enough and then she would grab him with her sharp fangs, wrap him in her long, muscular body, and suffocate him in her powerful coils. There would be no bleeding out for this one.

Ron feigned a stab at Nagini, but jumped back just before she could grab his ankle. She hissed. Ron stepped forward again, antagonizing her so she would come out of her coiled position. She lunged again, just missing him. Ron lunged, this time just grazing the snake's side with the sharp sword, drawing blood, but not enough to be fatal. Nagini hissed in fury, and before he knew what was happening, Nagini was on Ron, her fangs embedded deep in his calf and dragging him toward her so she could wrap her powerful body around him. Ron dropped the sword in shock and pain as he fell. He landed on his back and tried to grab his wand, but it was in his back pocket and he couldn't maneuver himself to get it. Ron screamed in agony as the snake dug her fangs in deeper, joyously. Hermione screamed in terror from her spot on the ground, furious that she could do nothing but watch.

Suddenly, before she knew what was happening, another snake, this one pitch black and also huge, came out of nowhere, reared up, and embedded its even longer fangs into Nagini's neck. Nagini released her grip on Ron in shock and thrashed violently, trying to bite the offending snake, but unable to.

Draco let go of Nagini and backed away slightly, looking for a place to land his next venomous bite. Nagini hissed at him, furious at the pain as the venom slowly spread throughout her neck and started making its way down her body. It would take a short while to kill her, but she would be even more dangerous as it did. Nagini lunged for the black snake, but Draco was faster and ducked out of the way, landing his own lightning-fast bite on her side. Nagini hissed again and lunged once more, but Draco dodged her attack one more time, landing one more bite on her side. Instead of pulling away from the bite, however, Nagini took the opportunity presented to her by the black snake's outstretched body and wrapped herself around him faster than anyone would have expected her move. Draco was surprised for a second as he felt the other snake's more powerful body wrap itself tightly around his own, then he panicked. He knew what would happen if he couldn't get out of her coils. She would wrap tighter and tighter around him until she crushed him and he could no longer get oxygen into his lungs. Then he would suffocate in agony and die. Draco struggled violently to escape the snake's coils. He thought about turning back into his human form, but her grip on his human body would be even tighter than her grip on his snake body and he would have a harder time escaping her, so he scrapped that idea and continued trying to wriggle free. It took him only a moment to realize that he wasn't going to get free. She was gripping him too tightly and he was beginning to see spots. He was gasping for breath and he could begin to feel ribs cracking under the pressure. He couldn't breathe through the pain. Now he couldn't see anything. His whole world went black and he quickly succumbed to the blackness. He'd stopped breathing.

.ooOoo.

From the second she'd seen the black snake grab Nagini, she'd known exactly who it was. She struggled hard to get her legs to work for her, but she couldn't stand. She watched helplessly and with bated breath as the black snake bit the larger snake multiple times, barely dodging her furious attacks, and got her hopes up for a moment, until she saw what came next. When Nagini managed to grab Draco and wrap him up, Hermione shrieked hysterically. She tried to drag herself toward the two snakes but couldn't move fast enough using only her arms. She needed her legs to work for her, but they refused. Hermione looked over at Ron lying on the ground grasping his splintered leg. The power from Nagini's bite managed to crack his femur in multiple places, and Hermione could see the bones poking out of his skin at odd angles. He was in agony, but she needed him right now.

"Ron!" she yelled. "Ron! The snake! Get Nagini while she's distracted! Get her now, Ron!" Hermione screamed in terror, and turned back to look at the two snakes just in time to see the black snake's body go limp. That terror almost stopped her heart when she saw the black snake turn back into Draco's human body, which still wasn't moving. Now Hermione couldn't take her eyes away, and she could hear someone screaming, but the sound seemed so far away that she didn't realize it was coming from her own lips.

Suddenly, there was another figure in the scene and then there was a flash of metal and Nagini's head was no longer attached to her body and the coils around Draco's body went limp and fell away, but she still couldn't breathe because he still wasn't moving and his eyes were staring blankly into the sky.

She didn't even realize she was moving until she fell to the ground next to Draco's body. She'd somehow managed to coax her legs into moving for her. She threw her arms across his stomach and put her head on his chest but what she heard, or rather what she didn't hear, terrified her even more. She hauled herself up and placed her hands, one on top of the other, over where his heart was and started pumping it for him, then leaned down and placed her lips on his now blue ones and breathed for him. She repeated this pattern for him over and over for what seemed like an eternity, and her movements got even more frantic as each one went without a response. Hermione was sobbing and the tears were dripping from her face down onto Draco's perfect and lifeless pale white features, but nothing would stimulate a response from him. But Hermione refused to stop trying. She would never give up on him.

Suddenly, there were two hands gripping Hermione's shoulders and trying to pull her away from the most important thing in the world, and she was fighting these horrible hands violently until the voice that belonged to those hands whispered gently, "Hermione, he's dead."

**I know, I know. You guys all basically want to hang me from a tree right now and throw rotten food at me, or possibly use me as a piñata. But just wait until the next chapter before you decide to find out where I live…. This is almost the end, guys. Thanks for sticking with me for so long. Please review, but please don't leave hate comments until the story is completely done. Then you'll have the whole thing to judge instead of the ending to just one chapter. Thanks! I love you all.**

**Love**

**-MBS**


	24. Chapter 24

**Holy crap, guys. This is it. This is the last and final chapter. I hope you guys love it. Read on…**

**CHAPTER 24:**

"Hermione, he's dead." Those words echoed through her mind and she stared at the limp body of the man she loved lying on the ground in front of her, and the hands on her shoulders were still trying to pull her up and why were they doing that? Couldn't they tell that she had nothing, was nothing, without Draco? Her heart felt like it was tearing itself to pieces. She was in agony. But there was no way she was giving up on Draco.

"No!" she screamed, then tore herself away from the hands. She placed her hands over Draco's heart one more time, remembering the day she and Draco had read about their bonding spell. "I will not let you go without a fight, Draco Malfoy. I love you," she said firmly, then closed her eyes, hearing a gasp from behind her but not caring at all who had just heard her confession. Hermione focused all her attention on the task at hand. She summoned all of the power she felt within her weakened body and forced it to move. It started very slowly at first, moving from the tips of her hair through her scalp, down her face, and into her chest. She also forced her power to move from her toes up her legs, through her abdomen, to meet the rest of her power in her chest, then she forced the power down her arms, into her hands. Suddenly there was a blinding white light coming from between her hands and the place where they met Draco's chest, then it disappeared, and Hermione's world went black. The last thing she felt before she hit the ground next to her love's body was a single 'thump-thump' under her outstretched hands.

.ooOoo.

"Hermione? Hermione?" There was a particularly loud voice in Hermione's ears and she groaned. She'd been sleeping so well, it was very rude for whoever owned the voice to be waking her up in such a manner.

"What?" she groaned, reaching out to slap away the voice as she cracked open an eye. The room was ridiculously bright, with white walls and white beds and white flowers everywhere. It was like an assault on her eyes. She groaned again. _Why am I in the Infirmary?_ she asked herself.

_Maybe because you were an idiot and almost got yourself killed trying to bring your mortal enemy back to life_, a snarky voice replied in her head and Hermione's eyes snapped open, remembering everything that had occurred right before she'd passed out. She practically flew out of bed, hunting for the owner of that snarky voice, but coming face to face with a rather freckly ginger person.

"Hermione!" Ron shouted, grabbing her up in his long arms and pulling her toward him. Her toes were no longer touching the ground.

"Ron, let me go," she laughed at her best friend's enthusiasm. He did as she requested and smiled at her, but when she asked, "Where's Draco? Is he okay?" Ron's face turned stormy and confused.

Ron opened his mouth to reply, but another voice answered, "Right here, Granger."

Hermione whipped around and saw a pale blonde head just a few beds down from where she had been laying. Even though Hermione was pretty sure she wasn't supposed to be walking, let alone running, she took off at a sprint, reaching the Slytherin's bed in record time. When she got there, however, she didn't know what she was supposed to do.

"Hi, Draco," she whispered bashfully, gripping her hands together.

Draco looked at her for a second, then rolled his eyes. "Well hello, Granger. And isn't the weather fine today?" Draco said in the most sarcastic tone Hermione had heard him use since before the beginning of the year.

Hermione stared blankly at him for a second, then burst out laughing. She threw herself across Draco's chest and gripped him tightly, pulling him close. It took a second but he wrapped his arms tightly around her as well, closing his eyes and burying his face in her wild mane of curls.

"You were gone. You left me," Hermione whispered, tears starting to escape her eyes.

"Well it's not as if I had a choice," he said gently. "And you saved me. You brought me back, even though I was gone. How did you do that?" he asked, genuine wonder in his voice, one hand caressing her tears off her cheeks.

Hermione smiled and laughed once at herself. "I remembered the book we read when we found out about the _Caput Capitis _spell for the first time. Remember how it talked about, in rare instances, the bonders being able to share their powers with one another? Well, I guess I kind of did that. I just gathered my powers and, well, shoved them into your chest, I suppose. I just wanted to get your heart beating again." She looked shyly into Draco's silver eyes.

Draco said nothing for a long moment, just molding his silver eyes with her chocolate ones. Now was the time for him to say what he'd known but not accepted for a long time. "I love you, Hermione Granger," he said, not breaking eye contact, and he felt her breath catch in her throat.

Hermione felt like she couldn't breathe, but she was perfectly okay with that. Draco loved her. That was the only thing she needed anyway. "I love you, Draco Malfoy," she replied as soon as her voice decided to cooperate with her mind.

Draco pulled Hermione close and brushed her lips with his, forgetting about anyone and anything else. She responded quickly, molding their lips together perfectly.

"Merlin's pants!" Ron breathed, thoroughly disgusted, from his spot by Hermione's bed. Hermione jumped and looked at him, embarrassed. "We _just _find out that you're… _seeing_ that Slytherin bastard and you don't think it might be kind of you to break us in easy?" Ron was horrified; that was apparent by his bright red face.

Draco just grinned and pulled Hermione closer, loving that it was making the Weasel uncomfortable, but Hermione batted his hands away and stood up.

"I'm _so_ sorry, Ron. I completely forgot you were here. It's just… been a while since I've seen him, is all," Hermione replied, just as horrified. She really had forgotten Ron was in the room the second she'd heard Draco's voice, alive and well.

Just as she said that, a familiar shaggy black head walked through the door carrying a tray full of food. "Have they started shagging in front of you yet?" Harry asked, not even looking up as he set the tray down.

"Yes!" Ron exclaimed at the same time that Hermione said, "No!"

Hermione frowned deeply at Ron, but Harry looked up at her with a smirk on his face. "I'm kidding, Hermione."

Hermione's horror turned to humor and she laughed, running over to where Harry was standing and throwing herself in his arms. Suddenly it hit her, "But Harry… if you're here, then…"

"Voldemort is dead," Harry replied matter-of-factly. "He's never coming back."

Hermione's jaw dropped, taking in that thought. "Oh my god," she breathed. "I think I need to sit down."

"Bring her over here," Draco's irritated voice spoke up from behind the group. It took a moment, but Harry did as he ordered. Harry sat Hermione down at the foot of Draco's bed.

"How?" Hermione asked, eyes wide as she stared at Harry. Ron had also followed them over toward the bed, but stayed farther away than Harry did.

"Your plan was genius, Hermione. As always. Once I got the snake away, I apparated back to Voldemort, giving you guys a chance to kill Nagini. You know what happened there," he said, glancing quickly at Draco. "When Voldemort felt Nagini die, he was furious, but distracted. He slipped up and my Expelliarmus was able to destroy his wand and him. He just turned to dust. It was incredible. My scar hasn't hurt since he disappeared," Harry said.

Hermione let out a relieved sob. "I can't believe it. It's really over."

"Yea," Harry replied, nodding. "All the remaining Death Eaters were taken away and are now at rest in Azkaban where they await the Dementor's Kiss."

At that, Draco sat up straight. "What about my mother?" he asked dangerously.

"See for yourself," Harry said, then turned to look at the large double-doors leading into the Infirmary. Just as they were opening, Harry said, "McGonagall knew she wasn't loyal to Voldemort, so she saved her from the Aurors." Suddenly, there was a whirlwind of blonde and brown hair hurling itself toward Draco's bed.

"Mother!" Draco shouted and grabbed her tightly.

"Oh, Draco! Thank Merlin you're okay!" Narcissa sobbed, refusing to let go of her son's shoulders. "I was so worried about you. I heard you died."

Draco gently pushed his mother away so she wasn't pressed up against him, then said, "I did."

Narcissa's breath caught and the tears fell even faster down her perfectly pale cheeks. "What? How…?"

"Hermione brought me back to life, Mother," Draco replied gently.

It took a second for that knowledge to sink in, but when it did, Narcissa turned her gaze to the embarrassed and intimidated young girl at the foot of her son's bed. "_You _saved my son's life?" she asked, shocked.

Hermione didn't know what to say so she just barely nodded. She didn't have any time to gather herself before the whirlwind was wrapping her arms around her and crying into her wild brown curls.

"Thank you so much, Hermione. I don't know how we could ever repay you," Narcissa sobbed against the startled Gryffindor. Ron and Harry just looked on in shock, and Draco was the most shocked of them all.

Hermione didn't know what to do, so she just patted the usually perfectly composed woman's back. As soon as Narcissa gathered her composure, she let Hermione go, but looked deep into her eyes and said, "_Anything_ you need, just ask me, and it will be done for you."

Hermione couldn't wipe the shock off her face, so she just said, "Thank you."

Narcissa nodded once then turned back to her son.

Hermione just met the startled eyes of her two best friends. 'I don't know,' she mouthed, shaking her head. Ron and Harry shook their heads too.

Once the three got over the shock of that interaction, Harry continued what he was saying. "So all the Death Eaters are going to get what's coming to them."

Hermione nodded, thankful for that truth. The three faded into silence for a moment before Ron spoke up.

"So do you want to tell us what in the bloody hell happened here?" he asked, gesturing between Hermione and Draco.

Hermione blushed deeply, hoping they would have just forgotten about that or pretended that nothing was different, but she knew that would never happen. "Ummm… well it's kind of hard to explain actually," she said.

"Well, start at the beginning and end right where we found you in the field," suggested Harry. She knew they weren't going to just let this go.

"Do you remember when I had that dream at the beginning of the school year and I woke up the entire tower, screaming?" she asked. The two boys nodded. "Well, I dreamt about being chased through the castle by one of those Nexaddos, the scorpion creatures. In my dream, Draco saved my life, then got killed because of it. When I woke up, I went down to the library to research those creatures and found Draco down there looking at books on dark creatures. We confronted each other and found out we'd both had the same dream." The two boys looked shocked. "Needless to say, we got over our animosity and began researching the creatures together, trying to find out why we would've shared the same dream. We went looking around the castle one day to try and find the hallway from our dream and we ended up finding it. In the hallway, we found a letter from Dumbledore addressed to the two of us. It said we had to get over our hatred for each other because we needed each other in order to defeat Voldemort. Long story short, we ended up getting… closer… and became… interested… in each other," she choked out, feeling incredibly awkward. Draco taught me how to become an animagus. Well, anyway, we ended up researching a person Dumbledore mentioned in his letter and found out that he was the inventor of a spell called _Caput Capitis_, which is a spell to bond two people together so they can speak telepathically and share power, which is how I saved his life in the field. I poured my power into him to jump-start his heart, so to speak. And now we're here," she said, almost all in one breath. She didn't meet either boy's eyes because she was so embarrassed.

When neither boy said anything for a full minute, Hermione looked up, terrified that she'd meet two pairs of hateful eyes, but she was surprised to see that they weren't hateful, just confused.

"And now you're… involved?" Ron spit out the word like it tasted like one of Bertie Botts' vomit-flavored jelly beans.

Hermione nodded once, still scared her best friends were going to leave her.

Harry, always knowing what she was thinking, shook his head dumbfounded and said, "We don't hate you, Hermione. We're just a little disgusted is all. We've spent the past six years hating Malfoy and now we find out you're a couple. And you never told us any of this until Ron heard you say you loved him in the field as you were trying to bring him back to life. We're confused and hurt, I guess, but we don't hate you."

Hermione understood. "I'm really sorry. I wish I could've told you before, but I knew how much you two hated him and I didn't know how to explain any of it then."

Ron had stared slack-jawed at this whole interlude, but then blurted out, "I suppose it was a good thing you waited this long to tell us, because now I can't totally hate the Ferret. He saved my life after all."

Hermione and Harry laughed at Ron's bluntness and the awkwardness was broken.

"You know, I doubt that we will ever be friends, but I'm willing to not be mortal enemies if Malfoy is. Are you, Ron?" Harry asked. Ron thought for a second, then nodded.

Hermione laughed, grateful for the kindness and love of her two best friends, but then something else came to her mind and her heart sunk. She looked up at the two with sad eyes and they knew what was coming. "Who did we lose?" she asked quietly, as if asking quietly might ease the pain of the answer.

Harry's eyes turned sad too. "Remus and Tonks are gone," he said sadly.

Hermione threw her hands over her mouth, the tears already making their way down her face. "Oh no! What about Teddy?" she asked, broken-hearted for their newborn son who would never know his parents.

"I'm going to raise him. I'm his godfather, remember? I will never let him live without knowing about what heroes his parents were. He will know them through us. I will make sure of that," Harry said, vehemently.

Hermione was extremely sad, but also grateful that Harry was going to take up this momentous task. She knew that there would be no better person in the world to raise Teddy than Harry. And Harry was right, they would never let Teddy go without knowing who his parents were. "Who else?" she asked, wanting to know who else they'd lost.

"Firenze, Professor Flitwick, Parvati and Padma, Justin Finch-Fletchey, Dean Thomas…" Harry said, then looked over at Ron. "Do you want to tell her?" he asked him.

Ron nodded sadly, tears in his eyes. "And Percy. Percy was killed, too."

"Oh, Ron," Hermione cried. "I'm so sorry," she said, throwing her arms around him.

"Me too," Ron said. "I just wish he hadn't been such a prat all those years. It would've been great to have seen the heroic side of him before he died. But I guess he redeemed himself, huh? He died protecting Ginny from Greyback. He threw himself in front of her and took the attack for her. Bill was able to kill Greyback, but Percy had already lost too much blood. He died on the spot," he said, crying now.

Hermione took a few minutes to hold Ron while he cried and Harry joined in the hug. After they let go, Harry said, "There were so many more casualties, but those were the only ones we were really close to. But that doesn't make the others any less important. You've been unconscious for a week now, Hermione. We had a memorial service for the dead two days ago, but there is a set up in the Great Hall with pictures and things that belonged to the victims if you want to go see it."

Hermione nodded and started to get up, but Draco's voice piped up from behind them. "Can I take her?" Draco asked, and the question in itself startled the Golden Trio into looking at him. Narcissa sat on the bed next to them and looked, waiting for their reaction.

"Uhhh, sure," Harry replied, unsure of whether Draco actually meant to form that as a question or not.

Draco nodded in response and slipped his feet over the side of the bed. Even though he'd also been in the hospital bed for a week, he still looked perfectly coifed, his pajamas unwrinkled and lint-free. Hermione was much less organized, but she didn't care.

Draco reached out for her hand once he got over to her, and she took it without hesitation, and the two made their way out the Infirmary doors, down the many winding hallways, and into the Great Hall. The entire undamaged side of the room was filled from one end to the other with pictures and items belonging to the deceased. Hermione was overwhelmed by the number of pictures. The two walked hand-in-hand taking in the devastation. Hermione felt terribly guilty when she looked at one picture of a smiling dirty-blonde girl, who giggled and waved into the camera, and didn't recognize her. Underneath her picture was a paper that said Haley Johnstone. Well, now she would never forget Haley Johnstone. Hermione conjured a pure white rose out of the air, kissed it, and laid it under the nametag. Hermione repeated this process for every single one of the pictures she saw, whether she knew the person or not. When she got to the picture of Remus and Tonks holding little baby Teddy the day he was born, she dropped to her knees. She sobbed as she looked at the picture. Remus looked scared out of his mind but also incredibly excited. He kept trying to pay attention to the camera, but kept tearing his eyes away to gaze in wonder at his beautiful healthy little boy. Tonks looked ecstatic. She was grinning from ear to ear and holding Teddy's little hand in her own, waving it up and down at the camera. Teddy just stared at the camera with drool running down his tiny chin. Draco didn't try to lift Hermione up, but sat down next to her, holding her against him as she sobbed.

Once Hermione had paid her respects to all of the dead, she turned to Draco. "It's really over. Nothing like this ever needs to happen again. Voldemort is gone forever." It was like she needed him to reassure her.

"He's gone, Hermione. That kind of darkness will never be seen again," he whispered, and it was like the sun had finally arisen behind Hermione's beautiful honey eyes. The tears stopped flowing though they had painted a river down her cheeks, and she turned up the corners of her lips.

"These people will never be forgotten," she said, gesturing toward the wall of remembrance.

"No, they won't. They are heroes, and heroes are never forgotten," he agreed.

Hermione smiled at him. "You know, you're a hero as well, Draco Malfoy. You saved Ron's life and you saved mine. You may have even saved Harry, which, in turn, saved the world. Without that distraction, Nagini may not have been killed, and then Voldemort wouldn't have been killed. You're a hero."

Draco rolled his eyes jokingly and sighed. "And don't you ever repeat that to anyone."

Hermione smiled broader and wrapped her arms around the beautiful blonde hero in front of her, knowing that everything would be okay now. The wizarding world was finally at peace, and everything was perfect. No one would ever have to hide again.

The End

**Oh. My. God. Merlin's. Trousers. And so on and so forth. I can't believe I can finally write the words "The End" and actually mean it! Holy crap! Sooooo… what did you think? Please let me know in a review. I can't thank you all enough for being with me through all of this. Through the long months (and months) of waiting for me to update. (I know, I was a horrible author. Bad me.) But now it's done. Now there is no more waiting! I hope you all loved it as much as I loved writing it. You all have given me so much joy and happiness. I got excited whenever I read a new update. I love you all for that. Thank you for being the best readers out there. **

**Much love forever and ever,**

**-MBS**

**(Oh and P.S. Merry Christmas! I hope this is a great Christmas present.)**

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